Moriah 3: RedNecked Revenge
by Joni Latham
Summary: Moriah and LaCroix return to Texas to exact a little revenge.


Moriah: Redneck Revenge By: Joni Latham  
  
Moriah opened her eyes and glanced at the window. Light was still peeking out from the edge of the shades and the clock on her night stand was showing three o'clock in the afternoon. Since it was a few more hours until dark, she snuggled inside LaCroix's embrace. He tightened his arms around her, then she felt him place a kiss on the back of her neck. Laying her arms across his, she hugged his arms to her.  
LaCroix lifted his head and leaned over her. He slowly nuzzled her neck, then presently whispered in her ear, "Little One, how are you feeling today? You, we, had quite an evening."  
She turned her head so that she could see his eyes. His eyes were the most beautiful shade of azure blue she had ever seen. In her own blue eyes, he found the answers to all an ancient vampire's prayers, if he prayed.  
"I'm feeling quite well, considering," she answered. "It still bothers me that I had to stake Divia, but I'll be all right in a few days."  
He pulled her hair away from her face and laid it on the pillow behind her. "If you had not used your speed to rid of us of her, Nicolas and I might not be here." He leaned over and kissed her. "Divia is not what I worry about though. Are you still comfortable with what we did last night? Do you still wish to be my lover now that you have had time to think?"  
She stared up into his eyes for a moment, then pulled his lips down to hers. Her kiss was long and passionate. It was not long before they felt themselves begin to vamp-out. She released him, but left her lips less than an inch away from his.  
"Does that answer your question, My Love?" she whispered, her eyes glowing.  
He swallowed, as he arched his eyebrow. Staring into the bright glow of her eyes, he simply said, "Yes."  
A little while later, LaCroix asked, "Do you still wish to pay Edward and the redneck vampires a visit?"  
Moriah's eyes began to glow. "Why, of course."  
"You appear to be developing a great interest in my revenge suggestions. You have always been so sweet. A little too sweet."  
Moriah grinned and laughed. "I only protect what is mine and those that I love. Up until now, you have always protected me and exacted revenge on my behalf. I have never had any reason to show any anger before. Now, that I have had a taste of it, I find that I like the power aspect of it, but don't expect me to be mean just for meanness' sake."  
He smiled softly. "I would expect no less. I am just pleased to know that you are capable of great anger and have a capacity for revenge. Most of all, I like knowing that you will go to such great lengths to protect me." He paused for a moment, thinking, then his facial features began to hardened. "Do you know where Edward can be found?" he asked. "You never mentioned his last name."  
"I haven't talked to him since that night twenty years ago, but I do know where he is. In fact, so do you. You see his name mentioned several times a week."  
"Oh! And, just who is he?"  
"Why, Our Lord Mayor."  
He sat up and stared at her. "You mean to tell me that he hurt you as badly as he did, and you allowed him to be elected mayor of this city. Why didn't you come forward during the election and stop him?"  
"Why should I put myself through the scrutiny? We have not had a clean mayor in decades. Besides, I'm happier now than I've ever been."  
Moriah saw his jaw stiffened. "We, or at least I, will pay The Lord Mayor a visit this evening. Moriah, no one harms you, do you understand?"  
The stern tone of his voice made her uneasy. She sat up and leaned back against the headboard. "Yes, Lucien," was all that she dared say.  
"It will be quite easy to find him this evening," he remarked with an evil smile.  
"Oh?" she questioned.  
"Yes. The Mayor's Ball is being held tonight, and I think that we shall make an appearance."  
"Lucien, are you sure that you wish to crash the ball?"  
"Did I mention anything about crashing the ball? I have been invited. I am invited every year. I have never had the desire to attend until now."  
Moriah looked very confused and shook her head. "Lucien, why are you invited to the Mayor's Ball?" she questioned. "No offense intended."  
"None taken, Little One. Socializing with humans is not something that I normally would choose to do, but this is a very special case -- you are a very special case. As for the invitation, to ensure that THE RAVEN remains free from human investigation, I donate sizable sums to certain key charities. As a courtesy, I receive an invitation every year." He paused. "So, am I allowed the privilege of escorting the most beautiful woman in Toronto?"  
Moriah blushed a little. "I thought that you wished to take me to the ball?"  
He glared at her, making her even more uncomfortable. "Yes, Lucien," she said quietly, averting her eyes. "We will attend the ball tonight. You know that I am always proud to be seen on your arm."  
LaCroix reached over and caressed her cheek. "You honestly do not realize how desirable you are to the male population -- vampire and human," he stated. "Why do you think that it has been necessary for me to intervene on your behalf so often? They see you and desire you, so they try to take you. I cannot believe that you do not see it."  
She smiled. "All I see is you," she said quietly.  
"And I, you," he said, leaning towards her and kissing her softly. He released her and glanced at the clock. "You might want to start dressing for the ball. We only have an hour."  
She crawled off the bed and walked over to her closet. Unlike most of the vampires she knew, Moriah did not wear much black. Her closest was full of the blues and pastels that she had worn when she was human. As she was staring into the closet, LaCroix walked up behind her and looked over her shoulder.  
He reached past her into the closet and pulled out a dress. "Wear this one, please," he said. "I like the way that it looks on you."  
She took the hanger from him and looked at the dress he had chosen. It was a strapless form-fitting royal blue gown. Little pieces of glitter sewed all over the gown, made it sparkle as the stars did in a clear night time sky. He had bought the dress for her during their first trip to Europe, but she had only worn it once or twice, preferring to save it for special occasions. It seemed that this was one of those special occasions. As she laid the dress on the bed, LaCroix walked to his own room to dress.  
Moriah had learned long ago to apply her make-up perfectly without the aide of a mirror. For tonight, she applied it a little heavier than usual. She piled her long blonde hair on top of her head, then slipped into her dress and shoes. She picked up a wrap and walked to the living room.  
Meanwhile in his room, LaCroix pulled a black tuxedo from his closest. Until he met Moriah, he seldom dressed formally. Once he met her, he began to regularly escort her to concerts, plays, and ballets. She wanted to broaden her cultural knowledge, and he was more than willing to instruct her, finding her a most eager pupil. He dressed, then walked to the living room.  
Moriah opened the drapes on one of the living room windows, and looked out on the streets while she waited. While she watched an altercation between a female and male human, she felt LaCroix slip his arms around her waist.  
"You look absolutely beautiful," he whispered, kissing her cheek.  
She kept her eyes on the humans and answered, "Thank you. I always hope that you think so."  
"I will," he promised, turning her face towards his and kissing her. He took her hand. "Come, we walk through the club tonight. I want the others to see you."  
"Are we showing-off a little?" she teased.  
He kissed her hand. "Just a little. Do you mind?"  
"No," she answered, bringing his hand to her lips. "I have always loved the way that you fill out a tux."  
Moriah wrapped her hands around his arm, then they walked downstairs and through the club. As LaCroix expected, heads turned as she passed by the bar area. He was a little vain when it came to Miranda. He was very proud of her and enjoyed being seen with her. Jealousy was never an issue when it came to the other vampires in their community.  
As they passed the bar, the bartender summoned LaCroix over to the bar. While they discussed business, Moriah floated up and sat on one of the bar stools. In a few seconds, several of the male patrons in the bar surrounded her stool. Vampires tended to be notorious flirts. They flirted worse than humans, but they were also much more dangerous. Many times their flirting resulted in an evening meal, but she had nothing to fear from them. The club was and had always been as much her domain as LaCroix's. He had seen to it that it was the one safe haven that she had when she was a human. A place where she would always feel safe.  
When LaCroix appeared at the end of the bar, the other vampires scattered into the safety of the dark recesses of the club. Moriah glanced up at him, then broke out in laughter.  
"What is so funny?" he asked, walking over and leaning on the bar beside her.  
Catching her breath, she said, "Watching them scatter when you appear. As they say, 'Your reputation preceded you.'"  
"It is THAT reputation which keeps you safe, Moriah. Many of these vampires could hurt you or worse, destroy you."  
"I know," she said softly. "But it's still funny to watch how fast they move in your presence."  
A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. "It is, isn't it?" he whispered.  
She smiled up at him and although no one else could see, she knew that he was smiling at her. He lifted her off the stool and set her gently on the floor.  
"Shall we?" he asked, offering her his arm. She took his arm and they continued walking through the club.  
The night was clear and very cool for a summer evening. Where Moriah stood on the sidewalk, waiting for LaCroix to close the door to THE RAVEN, she saw several stars peeking between the buildings. It would be a perfect night for a flight later after the ball. When they stepped into the alley, she looked for the human couple that she had been watching earlier. She worried about the female, because the male had raised his hand to hit her several times, then dropped it back to his side. As they walked towards the alley, she spotted them in the shadows. They were kissing and the female showed no signs of bruises, so she breathed a sigh of relief and they walked on to the next alley.  
The next alley was vacant and it was from there that Moriah and LaCroix flew to the site of the ball. It held in one of the oldest and most elegant hotels in Toronto. She had to admit that Edward always had good taste in material things. It was his morals that were lacking. They landed in the alley and adjusted their clothing. Before he escorted her out of the alley, LaCroix reached over and rearranged the sections of her hair that were loosened during the flight. Placing his hand on the middle of her back, he escorted her out of the alley and into the hotel. At the door to the ballroom, he produced the invitation from his pocket, and they immediately admitted them to the ballroom.  
Moriah reached for LaCroix's hand as they began to walk through the room. "Nervous, Little One?" he asked, tightening his grip on her hand. "You shouldn't be, you know. You have everything over these humans. You are beautiful, you have breeding, and you can control anyone you choose."  
"I know that in my head, Lucien. But, the human side of me still tells me otherwise," she whispered.  
"I am here with you, so you have nothing to worry about. Nothing will happen to you, can happen to you."  
She smiled up at him. "I love you. You always make me feel so safe."  
He kissed the top of her head, then pulled her out onto the dance floor. "Shall we dance until Edward makes an appearance?"  
She turned to face him and wrapped one arm around his neck, keeping her other hand in his. They moved to the music, floating across the dance floor. Moriah found that being a vampire had its advantages when it came to dancing. She never had to worry about having her feet stepped on or stumbling over her own feet. He smiled down at her as he moved them across the floor. She fit perfectly in his arms, as if they were made to hold her. When she returned his smile, he tightened his arm around her. They continued dancing, staring into each others eyes. They were lost in each other when they heard Moriah's name being called.  
They stopped dancing and turned towards the source of the voice. A woman made her way towards them. She was around sixty years old, but tried to look much younger. She had short dark hair, dark eyes, and dark skin. As she neared them, LaCroix noticed that she was no bigger than Moriah. He also noticed that Moriah's eyes had grown very large and held a look of fear mixed with anger. This must be Edward's mother he surmised.  
"Edward's mother?" he whispered. "Why is she not in prison?"  
"Yes, it is her," she answered. "She was only sentenced to ten years since she did not ever touch me herself."  
"And, she will not touch you now," he vowed, placing his hands on her shoulders.  
LaCroix slowly moved them back into a secluded corner as Edward's mother came nearer. He wanted no interruptions or prying eyes or ears. The woman ran up to them, stopping just a few paces away.  
"Moriah!" she cried. "What's it been close to twenty years since I last saw you? You look so well, so young."  
"Hello, Barbara," Moriah said hesitantly. "I suppose that it's nice to see you again. I'm really not sure."  
LaCroix leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Oh, I'm sorry, Darling. Barbara Cook, my I present..."  
Before Moriah could finish, LaCroix interjected, "Her husband, I am Moriah's husband, Lucien LaCroix."  
Moriah tried not to show the surprise in her face as she watched shock descend on Barbara's. Up until then he had only referred to her as his wife when they registered in hotels and motels, never in an introduction.  
Barbara stared at him for a few moments before she said, "Wait a minute! You are the man who always makes such large donations and never attends the ball. Why the change?"  
"Madam, I wanted my wife to see how the underbelly of the city lived."  
Moriah stifled a giggle. LaCroix had more breeding and more class than any human she knew, and to watch him talk down to them was one of the things that excited her the most. He knew this and performed for her whenever he was presented with the chance.  
"Well!" Barbara exclaimed. "I suppose that your wife has told you all the lies about my son and I?"  
"Madam, my wife has told me nothing. She does not think that you and your son are worth speaking of. What I know, I know from the police reports and prison records."  
Barbara decided that dealing with LaCroix was getting her nowhere, so she turned her attention back to Moriah. "I must admit that you look much younger and prettier now than when you were engaged to my son," she remarked, caustically.  
"I am happier now than I was with Edward. Lucien is more than I could have ever hope for," Moriah said, allowing her eyes to glow for just a split second.  
She did not know if she should have done it, but it felt so good. She was over her fear of Barbara and was now slowly becoming angry. She reached back for LaCroix's hand which he happily placed in hers. He squeezed her hand, indicating that as far as he was concerned, what she had done was all right. It pleased him to see that she was slowly coming out of her shell and beginning to enjoying the opportunity for revenge.  
If Barbara was taken back by the momentary glow in Moriah's eyes, she never showed it. She continued to rattle on about Edward. "You know that he would have never become mayor if he had married you. I was only looking out for his best interest. You realize that now, don't you? I love him like no other woman can, and I know what best for him and how to get him what he wants."  
LaCroix felt Moriah stiffen under his touch and sensed the anger growing inside her. "You are a sick woman, Barbara," Moriah finally said. "The love that you feel for Edward is really demented. What you did to me was just plain cruel, and I am in a position now to repay such cruelty."  
The expression on Barbara's face did not change. Obviously, Moriah's words did not have much of an impact on her. "And, what makes you think that you are in such a position, having a rich husband?"  
She shook her head. "No, you still do not understand. Money is not power. Real power lies within ones self and ones ability to love and be loved. Now, I have both. I have Lucien's love, and I possess a power within that cannot be bought or sold."  
A cruel look came into Barbara's face. "Those men who beat you up were just amateurs compared to men on my payroll now."  
"Men on your payroll? You still pay people to do your dirty work, huh? My family will protect me without pay. We can handle anyone and anything that you throw at us."  
"Oh, and what makes a little no class trollop like you so uppity. Your husband doesn't look so dangerous to me."  
"Appearances are very deceiving, Barbara. I'll give you a friendly warning -- Don't' push him. You might just get the surprise of your life."  
LaCroix started to speak, but Moriah squeezed his hand, causing him to remain silent. "Barbara Dear, would you like to accompany me to the ladies room for a moment?" she asked, staring into Barbara's eyes and reaching for her hand. "Then, I'll let my husband pay a little visit on dear Edward."  
She glanced up at LaCroix and saw an evil grin tugging at the corner of his lips. She knew that he was just waiting for her to free him to do as he wished to Edward. Still holding tightly to Barbara's hand, she stretched up and kissed him quickly before leading Barbara away. The ability to hypnotize humans was a power that she treasured and anyone that watched Barbara obediently follow her into the ladies lounge understood why.  
LaCroix watched her lead Barbara away and a sense of pride welled up inside him. She was beautiful, intelligent, capable, and full of passion. What more could any man want in a mate? When he had introduced himself as her husband, he blurted it out without thinking. Now that he had thought about it, he realized that for all intensive purposes they were married. They had been inseparable for years now and neither was happy when they were apart. The episode with Divia when he had almost lost her, proved to him how much they needed each other and belonged together.  
In the middle of his thoughts, he felt a small tug on his coat sleeve. He glanced down and found a small face beaming up at him. Moriah wrapped her arms around his waist and stretched up towards his lips. Since they were in a dark corner where only someone with vampire sight could see them, he lifted her up and kissed her passionately.  
"What did you do to your friend?" he whispered.  
"You'll see," she said, smiling slyly. "Just keep your eye on Barbara when the spotlight comes on and they announce Edward."  
"What did you do?"  
She laughed as he set her back on the floor. "You'll see. You can do me a favor though, My Love."  
"Anything that you wish, Little One."  
"When it happens and you will know when it happens, please make sure that Edward sees us. His mother won't remember a thing about seeing me."  
He took her hand and led her back to the dance floor. "He will see us, Moriah. You can count on that." As he wrapped his arms around her and they began to dance, he asked softly, "Did you mind my saying that I was your husband?"  
"Mind?" she questioned, swaying with the music. "Why would I mind? I was thrilled to hear you say it."  
"I am pleased," he said, quietly. "That is the way that I have come to feel about you. When I thought that I might lose you, I could not imagine life without you. You have brought me so much. I feel loved and needed. Not to mention, you have brought Nicolas back to me. It is not the way that I had intended, but he is part of my life and he is becoming more tolerant of me. It is you who have caused this change. We both want to please you, so we both benefit from trying."  
"Glad that I could help," she said, beaming up at him.  
He released her hand and ran his hand across her cheek. She wrapped her free arm around his neck so that she had both arms around his neck. She stared up into his eyes as they continued moving to the music while he caressed her cheek. She began to wonder how many human females had stared into that pair of blue eyes before they became his evening meal. To her, his eyes would have had a hypnotic effect, even if he was not a vampire. She shook her head to clear the thoughts.  
"Thinking again?" he whispered.  
"Wondering how many evening meals you captured with those beautiful blue eyes of yours."  
"Enough," he answered. "You could just as easily been one of them, but your own blue eyes and inquisitive mind saved you."  
"Oh?"  
After a moment, he said, "All right, all right. You were never in danger. That first night that you stumbled in the bar, I knew that I could never harm you or allow you to be harmed."  
"Wait a minute! You're the one that kept the Enforcers away from me," she accused.  
"I will admit it, I did. Something in the back of my mind told me that you would find your way back to me and that we were destined to be together."  
"I'm glad. As you can see, we do belong together."  
"Yes, we do," he said quietly, pulling her closer to him.  
A few minutes later, he pointed to the other end of the room. "Look! The Mayor is about to make his speech."  
Moriah grabbed his hand and pulled him through the crowd. "Come on, Lucien, " she cried. "You don't want to miss this, believe me."  
"What did you do?" he asked as she drug him through the crowd.  
"Just wait and see. I think that you'll be please. The whole town will see just how big a slut she is."  
"Moriah! What language coming out of your mouth."  
All she did was laugh as she pulled him to a stop about ten feet to the left of the stage. "Now watch. The drum roll to bring Edward on stage is the cue."  
LaCroix wrapped his arms around her waist and she leaned back against him while they waited for the show to begin. The stage began to fill with people while the people in the ballroom began to gather around the stage. Several of the town's dignitaries had taken seats on the stage, awaiting the introduction of His Honour the Mayor. A quintet of percussion took their place on the stage in the far corner opposite LaCroix and Moriah. The quintet contained a bass drum, two timpani drums, and two snare drums. Barbara took her seat with the other dignitaries and watched the wings for son to walk on stage. The mayor's aide walked to the microphone and announced that His Honour the Mayor was making his way to the stage. As he walked back to his seat, the percussionists began to beat their drums in a drum roll. Moriah quickly directed LaCroix's attention to Barbara sitting on the stage.  
Barbara's foot began to tap to the beat of the drums, then she rose from her chair. She began to bump and grind her way across the stage, removing pieces of clothing as she moved back and forth. Nothing anyone did stopped her. No even the cameras flashing in her face had an effect on her. They silenced the drums, but Barbara kept dancing to the beat that Moriah placed in her head. Edward ran on stage and he along with several of the men on stage tried to hold her, but she pulled loose and continued to remove her clothing.  
Moriah implanted the suggestion in her head and only she or another vampire could release her. LaCroix felt her laughing in his arms, and he had to admit that he was enjoying the show himself. The pictures in the morning papers would be a fitting punishment for Barbara. Now Edward was another matter, and Moriah had given Edward to him. His punishment would not be so comical.  
When Barbara was down to her bra and panties, Moriah decided that it was time to put an end to the show. She called Barbara to the edge of the stage where she and LaCroix were waiting. He lifted her up and set her on the stage beside Barbara, then handed her his tuxedo jacket. As she wrapped the jacket around Barbara, she released her from her trance.  
Back in control of her own faculties, Barbara saw that she almost naked with just LaCroix's coat as a cover. She cowered down and leaned against Moriah for support. Complying with Moriah's wishes that he ensure that Edward saw them, he stepped up on stage and assisted her in helping Barbara over to Edward.  
Edward stared at Moriah, then up at LaCroix. He wrapped his own coat around his mother and gave LaCroix's back to him. While he arranged for one of the aides to watch over Barbara, Moriah and LaCroix slipped quietly off the stage. They walked back to one of the dark corners of the ballroom to wait for Edward to find them.  
When they were in the safety of the dark, Moriah released the laugh that she had been stifling. LaCroix even released a small chuckle.  
"Well?" she gasped between laughs.  
"It was priceless," he admitted. "Little One, I didn't think that you had that in you. I should have known better. As I have said before, there is an evil steak in you begging to be released."  
"Not evil, Lucien, just playful. Now did that really hurt her? I think not. It only embarrassed her to the point that she has lost any creditability with her son and this town. Remember, I have left Edward's punishment up to you."  
"And, a fitting punishment it is too," he said, stiffening his jaw.  
"You aren't going to tell me, are you?"  
"You did not tell me. Turnabout is fair play, I say. Besides, you might not want to know what I have planned."  
"Lucien, I have no more reservations where you are concerned. You are free to do whatever you like. I trust you totally."  
"You do?"  
"After yesterday, I trust you completely."  
LaCroix looked around him at the other guests. Since the crowd still watched the activities happening on-stage, he pulled her into his arms. In the cover of darkness, he leaned over her and covered her mouth with his. Her hands crept up his chest, then wrapped themselves around his neck. She continue to return his kisses until she felt her fangs begin to grow, then she pulled away. As she stared up into his eyes, she caressed his cheek with her hand. He covered her hand with his and rubbed his cheek against the palm of her hand. Her desire for revenge evaporated; all she wanted to do was leave the ball, so that she could have LaCroix all to herself.  
"Just a little while longer, Little One," he whispered as Edward's aide approached them.  
"The mayor would like to see you in his chambers in the back of the hotel, Miss," the aide said, straining to see her in the darkness.  
The aide was a thin little man about Moriah size with a balding head and large dark brown eyes. With his rather large hooked nose, he reminded her of a vulture. How fitting that Edward's personal aide would resemble a creature of such ill repute.  
"Miss, would you come with me?" he asked, reaching for her arm.  
She slid away from him and wrapped her hands around LaCroix's arm. "Darling, shall we see what Edward wants?"  
The aide raised his hand in the air. "No, the mayor only wishes to see you -- alone."  
Moriah shook her head. "If he wishes to see me, then he will see my husband, too. Otherwise, I will just stay here and dance."  
"No. No. Your husband may come. If I return without you, I will be in big trouble."  
Moriah smiled sweetly as she and LaCroix followed the aide through the ballroom to a door that opened into a long hallway. They walked down the hallway to a door at the very end. The aide opened the door and they stepped inside.  
As the aide closed the door behind them, LaCroix spotted Edward sitting at the end if a long table in the middle of the room. His eyes narrowed as he glared at him. He most definitely was not impressed. People almost always look different in person than they did on television and Edward was no exception.  
Edward had the same coloring as his mother, but was of much bigger stature, somewhere close to six feet four inches tall. He was very muscular and if LaCroix did not possess a vampire's strength, he would not have wanted to challenge him. His appearance shocked Moriah.. Edward should have looked around the same age that LaCroix appeared to be, but he looked old enough to be her father. He had obviously paid a big price for his position and power.  
The aide directed to walk to the end of the table. Holding on tightly to LaCroix's hand, Moriah slowly ventured down the length of the table until they reached Edward. He stood and took a few steps towards them. Before she knew what had happened, he grabbed Moriah and hugged her to him. It took much of LaCroix's self-control not to reach out and grab him at the moment, because he knew if he did, he would kill him.  
"Moriah!" Edward said, holding her tightly as she struggled against him. "It is so good to see you. I haven't seen you since you disappeared all those years ago. You haven't aged a bit and I mean that. You look exactly the same."  
She could have broken his hold very easily, but she wanted to be just what she appeared; a weak frail human female. Finally she had enough and jerked herself free from his arms with one well- placed elbow to the stomach. She quickly stepped back towards LaCroix before he recovered enough to retaliate.  
"Disappeared?" she questioned. "What do you mean disappeared? Your mother had me beat up and as a result, I spent weeks in the hospital. When she tried again, they caught her and she spent time in prison. Where did you think that she was for ten years?"  
An evil look appeared in his eyes. "Oh, I knew that she was in prison, but she told me that you set her up. Paying someone to beat you up and make it look like she did it. I knew that you were a conniving little bitch, but I didn't think that you would stoop so low."  
Without looking, Moriah knew that LaCroix's eyes were flashing. Since his self control showed signs of ebbing, Moriah hurried her discussion with Edward so that she could turn him loose.  
"Edward, I would watch that sort of language around my husband. He doesn't take kindly to besmirches against my character. Besides, after that little show that your mother put on out there, I wouldn't call anyone names."  
"Oh, so you found some poor sap to marry you, did you?" He stared up at LaCroix. "From the looks of him, I would say that he is a step down from me."  
"Actually Edward, he is so far above you that you can't even touch him. I really owe your mother for breaking us up. If I had married you, I would have never met him." She stepped away from LaCroix and backed up towards the aide who was watching from the other side of the table. "He has been wanting to get his hands and repay you for happened to me. Now that I have had my say, I think that I will allow him to have his little fun." As she reached the other side of the table, she said, "My Love, he's all yours."  
The aide tried to push past Moriah and leave the room, but she reached out and grabbed him. She sat on the edge of the table, pulling him up with her. "Just have a seat up here with me and stay out of the way if you know what's good for you."  
Once she had the aide under control, she turned her attentions towards where LaCroix was advancing towards Edward. She could not see his face, so she had no idea if he was vamped-out or if his eyes were glowing, but she did see Edward backing away from him.  
"You really should not make such disparaging remarks about a man's wife in his presence," LaCroix said, smiling wickedly.  
Edward was shaking, but he was not going to let LaCroix know that he was scared. "I'll say anything I want about anyone I want. Moriah is just a little piece of trash anyway, You're welcome to her."  
Moriah wished that she could see LaCroix's face, because suddenly Edward started running towards the window. LaCroix disappeared, then reappeared in front of him. As he clamped his hands down on Edward's shoulders, six of Edward's men burst into the room. As Moriah watched them run into the room, she felt sorry for the fools. Edward was about to make a snide remark about LaCroix being in trouble when he saw two of his men fly across the room and land by the door. As he watched in horror, the other four men landed on top of the first two. He stared at LaCroix and tried to jump through the open window.  
LaCroix met him at the window, then grabbed him by his collar. "Allow me," he said, leaping out the window with Edward his grip.  
Moriah sat calmly on the table, holding tightly onto the aide's coat and enjoying the scene being played out before her. Finally, she turned to the aide and staring into his eyes, erased the last few minutes from his memory. Slipping off the table, she walked over and did the same to the six men lying on the floor before stepping to the window to join LaCroix. She turned and looked at the seven men piled before her, six of which were twice her size. She thought about Edward's mother and what she had made her do that night. She should have felt some remorse, but she found that she did not. She actually reveled in the power that she had exercised that night. A big grin came to her lips as she soared out the window and up into the air.  
Once in the air, she felt so good that she found herself performing some trick flying on her way to join LaCroix. In the past twenty-four hours, she had proved so much to herself and he had proved how much he loved her. Everything was going her way and the night so far had been very enjoyable. From on top of Moriah's favorite building, LaCroix felt her coming and looked up in the air in time to see her perform a few back flips and some spiral spins. Every time that he watched her fly, It amazed him how agile, fast, and adept she was -- she was beauty in motion. He knew no existing vampire that could equal her flying ability. He was still staring in the air with his hand gripping Edward when Moriah swooped in and landed beside him.  
"Hi," she said, smiling.  
"Are we feeling a little full of ourselves tonight?" he asked, smiling down at her.  
"Just a little. I'm so glad that I listened to you about this visit. Now, I can't wait to get to Texas."  
He laughed loudly. Moriah had heard him chuckle softly, but never a loud laugh before. The laugh startled her for a moment before he regained his usual quiet demeanor. "I knew it," he said softly. "I knew that once you had a taste of it. You would like it. I bet that you are ready to punish Billy and his gang too?"  
"Yes, I am ready. Also, there is one more thing that you have taught me that I like too," she said, grinning. "Finish with Edward and I'll show you."  
He jerked his head around and stared down her. She floated up and kissed him, then flew over and sat on the edge of the building. He looked down at the limp human in his grip, then over at Moriah waiting for him on the building's edge. He decided that he would have to make quick work of Edward, he had something worth a lot more waiting for him. Suddenly, he lost interest in making Edward pay for what he had done to Moriah. His reputation demanded that he had to do something. He could not allow him to go unpunished. After thinking for a minute, he stared into Edward's eyes, then called Moriah over to him.  
"Would you mind vamping-out for a minute?" he asked.  
"No," she answered, closing her eyes and concentrating.  
When she looked back up at him, her eyes were glowing and her fangs were at their full length. At the same time, LaCroix vamped-out and just as the night before his vamped-out condition had an interesting effect on her. She focused her attention back on the task at hand. Once he was sure that Edward had absorbed the appearance of both of them vamped-out, they returned to normal.  
"I shall return momentarily," he said. "I am going to place Edward somewhere that will cause a little scandal when he is found. How does Madam Monique's Massage Parlor sound?" Moriah giggled. "I take it that you approve of my choice," he commented, raising his eyebrow. "Also, he will remember seeing us vamped-out, but he will think that it a dream."  
"This is not what you had planned, is it?  
"No, but I have suddenly lost interest."  
She grinned. "I wonder why?"  
It took everything in him to ignore her grin and continue with the task at hand. "I think ruining his career is enough punishment," he said before disappearing into the darkness.  
Until he returned, Moriah occupied herself by flying around above the building. Once in the middle of a downward spiral, she felt herself being lifted back up into the air. She spun around and wrapped her arms around LaCroix's neck.  
"Hi, Handsome," she giggled as they floated in the air. "You don't realize what your vamped-out state does to me."  
"I have an idea," he said quietly, pulling her to him and kissing her deeply, passionately.  
As they kissed, he floated gently down to the roof of the building. When they landed, her eyes mesmerized him and lost him in their glow.  
"Shall we go home, Little One?" he whispered. "Home, where we will not be disturbed."  
Moriah remained silent, only nodding her head as an answer. He wrapped his arms around her and floated up in the air. In a few minutes, they were walking up the steps to their apartment. Once he closed the door behind them, LaCroix reached for her, pulling her into his arms.  
"Now, where were we?" he murmured.  
"I think about here," she whispered, placing her lips on his.  
"I think that you are rig...," his voice trailed off as she kissed him.  
  
Over the next few days, the television newscasts and newspapers were full of stories and speculations on the actions and activities of His Honour the Mayor and his blessed mother. Moriah missed none of the broadcasts or the articles written in the newspapers. LaCroix even joined her in front of the television occasionally to see the results of his handiwork. The city council recalled Edward and set an election for a new mayor to be held within the month. Barbara voluntarily admitted herself to a psychiatric hospital for observation. This ended the political career and any other possible public careers for Edward Cook.  
Did Moriah feel any twinge of guilt? Oh, maybe she felt guilty for about five minutes. It was during the five minutes that Edward made a public statement implicating his mother in the attack on Moriah all those years before. He did not even show signs of regret when he turned his mother over to the men in the white coats.  
When the scandalous uproar they caused began to die down, Moriah decided that it was time to leave for Texas and the redneck vampires. LaCroix was more than ready to leave with her. She had become his favorite traveling companion. He found that as long as he never tried to manipulate her, she allowed him the freedom to be what he was without ever complaining. Fortunately, her influence curbed many of his old habits. He found that he preferred to spend his time with her instead of out causing human misery.  
Just before they left, she called Johnny, her old boss at the police station and the human brother of the leader of the "redneck vampires," to assess the situation. Since he spent most of his time protecting the humans from his brother and his gang of vampires, she knew that he would not inform his brother that she was coming. He told her that it was about time to put another scare into the gang and that she and LaCroix were more than welcome to pay them a visit.  
The morning before they were to leave, Nick asked to accompany them to Texas. Moriah had no objections to his coming if LaCroix did not. For many years, several hundred in fact, Nick had been LaCroix's traveling companion, although many times he went with him begrudgingly. Moriah never understood why if Nick hated it so much, he had stayed with LaCroix for so long. When she was human, he had tried to explain to her that LaCroix held a certain power over him, but she thought that it was just an excuse for his own weaknesses. Now even though she was a vampire herself, she still did not understand the concept of control. She had never been under anyone's control and thought that she never could be. She could not understand how LaCroix could have made Nick do things that he did not want to do. In her way of thinking, it was easy to influence Nick at the time and he found it easier to use LaCroix as an excuse. Anyway, the reason did not matter, LaCroix seemed almost thrilled that Nick wanted to go with them so who was she to put a damper on it. She did designate herself as the peace keeper to ensure that things remained uncomplicated during the trip. So it was that Moriah, LaCroix, and Nick left for Texas the next evening just after sunset.  
  
When LaCroix brought her back from Texas, the trip had taken a little over two days by car. This time she was strong enough to fly on her own, so it would only take a little over one day by flight. They would only have to find shelter for one night, then the next night they would arrive at Johnny's.  
A few hours before daylight, Moriah stood with the bags while LaCroix and Nick walked up to the desk of the hotel to register. Their room assignments were next to each other. Nick took his bag and walked to the first room while Moriah followed LaCroix to the next room.  
LaCroix dropped their bags on the bed while she looked around the room. There was a small refrigerator sitting in the corner. She dug out the bottle of blood and knelt down to place it inside to cool. Standing up, she finished surveying the room. There was a television with cable, a jacuzzi tub, and a king size bed. She walked back over to the bed, removed the bags, and stretched out on the covers.  
"I have never flown this far in this length of time before," she commented, taking a deep breath. "It's hard work."  
"You need to take drink," LaCroix said softly, sitting down beside her.  
"Not until it is chilled," she answered, shuddering. "You know that I can't stand it warm."  
He shook his head. "You cannot stand to drink it warm, but you can lick it off your lips after sinking your fangs into my neck. I don't understand."  
"That makes two of us," she answered, scooting up to the head of the bed and curling up on a pillow. "It is just different, that's all." As Moriah finished speaking, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.  
Sitting on the edge of the bed, LaCroix watched her for a few minutes before shrugging his shoulders and stretching out beside her. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her close and covered them with the extra blanket.  
A few hours later, Moriah woke up, shaking and shivering. It was obvious that she needed to eat. Sitting up on the edge of the bed, she tried to stand and walk to the refrigerator, but she was too weak and shivering too much.  
LaCroix rolled over and sat up next to her. "I knew this would happen," he said. "But I learned a long time ago not to argue with you. Just sit still." He walked over to the refrigerator and brought back the bottle and a glass. "Since you waited until you are sick, you will have to drink more than your usual amount," he said, pouring a glass full. "Now, drink it."  
LaCroix held the glass up to Moriah's lips and made her drink it down, then he poured another glass full. As he was pouring the second glassful down her mouth, there was a knock on the door. Moriah held out her hand to take the glass from him, so that he could open the door to Nick.  
When Nick stepped into the room, Moriah's appearance worried him. "Are you feeling all right?"  
Moriah looked up at him, but did not answer. LaCroix answered for her as he closed the door.  
Obviously agitated, he said, "She made herself sick. She was tired and exhausted and would not drink until it was cold."  
Nick glanced back at LaCroix, then walked over and sat down beside her. "Don't pay any attention to him," he said, putting his arm around her. "If you can't drink it warm, you can't drink it warm."  
LaCroix leaned against the wall and watched his children together. He did not know or understand why, but he always experienced a warm feeling when he saw them together. Maybe he did need that family that Moriah spoke of so often.  
"Nick," Moriah said softly, beginning to regain her strength. "Why did you want to make this trip? You hate traveling with LaCroix, or at least, that is what you have always led me to believe. And, what did Natalie say about it?"  
"It's not too bad now that you're here. You sort of act as a buffer. Besides, I did not intend to miss a chance to see these 'redneck vampires' of yours," he answered, smiling. "As for Natalie, she was all for it and wanted to come herself, but I told her that it wouldn't be safe. Look what happened to you."  
"As Lucien says to me, 'Nick, you are evil.' You want to see what I am going to do to them, admit it. And Nick, I think that is exactly what Natalie wants to happen, hoping that you would be forced to cross her over. She wants to be with you so much."  
Nick was quiet for a moment, then a grin spread across his face. "All right, I admit it. I want to see what you have planned for them. You have such imagination."  
Since he chose to ignore her comment concerning Natalie, she addressed his remark concerning the redneck vampires. "Nick, I have no idea what I will do to them, if anything. The situation will probably be like the one with Divia. I'll do whatever it takes at the moment."  
"I must admit that you were very surprising in that little situation. I never thought that you would go so far to protect me and LaCroix."  
"It was a gut reaction, I couldn't let her take either of you from me. I was not about to allow to her beat us."  
"All I can say, is that I don't want you ever angry with me. So, tell me about the town I am about to visit and these redneck vampires."  
"Well, it's just a normal little Texas town, except for Billy and his gang. Billy and his gang are some of the grossest vampires that I have ever met. They are dirty and smelly and have no breeding what-so-ever. As for the town, once Lucien brought me across, we stayed pretty much to ourselves with an occasional visit from Johnny. I know that Johnny knows all about vampires, because of Billy, but I am not sure about the rest of the town. I have a feeling that more people probably know than should. Billy is not discrete and was never trained properly. He may not even know that he can clear their memories."  
"Sounds as if you won't have to work very hard to punish this little group."  
"She will not," LaCroix confirmed. "A child could outsmart this group. Any fledgling of mine has the power to destroy them if they so choose."  
Moriah's eyelids began to droop. As she began to yawn, she crawled back to the head of the bed.  
"If you'll excuse me, I think that I'll lie back down for a while. I'm not feeling too well."  
She curled up on the other side of the bed with her back to LaCroix and Nick, then closed her eyes. So as not to disturb her, LaCroix and Nick moved to the chairs on the other side of the room to talk.  
A little while later, the sound of arguing jolted Moriah awake. She rolled over to see Nick arguing with LaCroix. Actually Nick was talking very loudly to a very silent LaCroix. Rolling off the bed, she slowly stood and was able to maintain her balance, so she walked over to them.  
"Nick, stop shouting!" Moriah demanded as she neared them. "You woke me up."  
Nick immediately grew silent and LaCroix glanced up at her.  
"Why do you argue with him?" she asked, putting her hands on LaCroix's shoulders. "You have known Lucien longer than I and just because I'm here, doesn't mean that his personality has been altered any. He's still the same as he always was. If you can't be civil to him, go to your room!"  
Nick looked her straight in the eye, through her whole reprimand. Now, he glanced down at the floor. "I'm sorry that I woke you and what you say is true. I've always allowed him to get to me and I don't know why. I know to look the other way, but I just don't do it. I think that I will go to my room and let you rest."  
Nick rose from his chair and leaned over to kiss Moriah's cheek, then he left the room. Once they were alone, LaCroix reached back and pulled her around to face him. She knelt down beside the chair so that she would not stand above him.  
Reaching out, he enfolded the side of her face in his hand. "You always defend me so passionately," he remarked.  
"I have to," she answered.  
"Why?"  
"First, I love you. Second, Nick was totally in the wrong. He knows you well enough to know what you are like. If he can't carry on a conversation with you, without allowing it to get out of hand, then he should limit his conversations with you. As for Divia, there was no way that I was giving you up without a fight, you mean too much to me."  
"Do I now?"  
She glared at him. "Don't give me that, you know you do. I won't be baited like Nick, I'll just go back to bed," she said, removing his hand from her face and standing.  
LaCroix grabbed her arm and rose to his feet. "Wait," he said softly, enfolding her in his arms. "Nicolas tends to bring out that side of me. He is so easy to agitate and I have always enjoyed it immensely."  
Moriah crossed her arms over his. "It's fine with me, if you want to tease Nick, but just don't do it around me, please. Besides, waking me up from a sound sleep, Nick has been through an awful lot over the years. I will admit that most of it was his own fault, and after the way that he treated me in the beginning, I shouldn't care, but I do. He has proven himself to me over and over again. I know that you don't have to do what I ask, just please consider it."  
Turning her around, LaCroix leaned over and kissed her. "You know that I cannot refuse you anything. I will promise that I will try, but only when you are present."  
"Fair enough," she said, kissing him back.  
LaCroix saw how exhausted Moriah was and made her go back to bed. She put on her gown, lay down, and closed her eyes. Once he was sure that she was asleep, he changed his clothes and joined her. Wrapping his arms around her, he watched her sleep for a few minutes before closing his eyes.  
Moriah was so exhausted that she did not wake up until thirty minutes before sunset. When she opened her eyes and looked around the room, she discovered that she was alone. LaCroix woke up earlier and not wanting to disturb her, went to Nick's room. Crawling out of bed, she walked to the bathroom to clean up and change clothes. She dressed and was packing everything back into her bag when LaCroix walked back into the room.  
Looking up from her packing, she asked, "Visiting Nick?"  
Leaving the door ajar, LaCroix walked across the room and put his arms around her. "Yes," he said softly. "I didn't want to disturb you."  
She placed her arms on top of his and hugged his arms. "I thought as much."  
"Nicolas and I were talking about how you found out about Divia from him, and why you never ask me about my past or cross over. You allow me to tell you stories and you ask about historical figures, but that is all. Why?"  
Moriah turned to face him. "Don't get me wrong, but I would just as soon know as little about your life before me as possible. I don't care what happened before me and as they say, 'ignorance is bliss'. I only care about now and the future."  
"What have I done to deserve you?"  
"Maybe, it not what you did to deserve me. Maybe, it's what they think that I can do for you and the others."  
"They?"  
"Yes, the powers that be, none of what we do is by chance. Everything is pretty much laid out for us."  
LaCroix stared at her, then shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose it does not really matter why you here. The important thing is that you are here."  
"That is about the size of it," Moriah said, smiling. "Nick's coming."  
As she finished her statement, she pulled out of LaCroix's arms before Nick stuck his head in the door. Since LaCroix had left it ajar when he entered the room, it did not give her too much time to move away from LaCroix. She chose not to allow Nick to see too much of LaCroix's affectionate side unless he chose to reveal it. He had kept up such a cool and emotionless persona for so long that she did not want his feelings for her to damage his reputation.  
"Are you ready to leave?" Nick asked, dropping his bag on the floor.  
"Yes, I think so," Moriah said, walking over to her bag.  
As Moriah picked up her bag, LaCroix took it from her. "I'll carry it."  
Moriah smiled at Nick, then took hold of LaCroix's arm as he walked towards the door. As they walked to the front desk, she looked up at both of her vampires and had to admit that she loved them both dearly. They were her best friends. As a child, she had always heard that vampires were some sort of monsters, but in all her time with them, she found them just like humans. Some were good, some were bad, and some were "rednecks".  
While LaCroix and Nick were checking out of the hotel, Moriah called Johnny to advise him of their arrival time. Johnny said that he found them a place to stay while they were in town, so they should stop by his house when they arrived in town. He had wanted them to stay with him, but Moriah refused. She had only talked to Johnny's wife, Lauren, a couple of times when she was human. It was not that she did not like Lauren, but there was something about Lauren that made her very uneasy. She replaced the receiver on the cradle and joined LaCroix and Nick to start the last leg of their journey.  
  
It was well before midnight when they arrived at Johnny's house. LaCroix and Nick waited by the curb while Moriah walked down the sidewalk to the house. Johnny waited alone for them on his porch. She always liked Johnny, because he reminded her of what her Father would have been like at his age. He stepped off the porch and met her halfway.  
"Moriah!" Johnny called, grabbing and hugging her, then swinging her around. "It's so good to see you again."  
It was the usual down home greeting and did not mean anything, or so Moriah thought. Nick, on the other hand, worried about how LaCroix would react to Johnny being so familiar with her and glanced over at him to see if the hug disturbed him. From the look on his face, it was obvious that LaCroix was none too pleased with the situation. Since he did not seem ready to attack, Nick shrugged his shoulders and turned his attention back to Moriah and Johnny.  
Moriah walked up to them with her hands on Johnny's arm. Seeing the look on LaCroix's face, she quickly let go of Johnny's arm. Moving over beside him, she wrapped her hands around his arm.  
"Johnny, you remember Lucien?" she asked, smiling.  
"Of course, I remember him," he said, extending his hand. "He put Billy in his place real good the last time. Did you come back to do it again?"  
To both Moriah's and Nick's surprise, LaCroix took his hand and shook it. "No, not this time," LaCroix answered, looking down at Moriah. "Moriah has come to prove to Billy how dangerous it would have been for him to bring her across."  
After he finished speaking, he dropped Johnny's hand and covered Moriah's hands his.  
Johnny stared at her for a moment, then finally asked, "Can she do that? Is she strong enough?"  
"She can hold her own," Nick remarked, smiling.  
"And, who are you?" Johnny asked Nick, looking him from head to toe.  
Moriah reached over and pushed Nick forward. "I'm sorry," she said. "Johnny, this is my brother, Nick."  
Johnny's eyes grew wide. "Not THE Nick?" he asked. "The one who caused you to run down here and into Billy's clutches in the first place."  
Nick glanced down at the ground. "Yes, one in the same."  
Johnny reached for Nick's hand and shook it. "Just wanted to be sure," he said, smiling. "Obviously everything's fine now or you wouldn't be here with her."  
Moriah reached over and slipped her hand into Nick's. "Yes, Johnny. Everything is fine now. I couldn't ask for a better brother or friend." She smiled up at Nick who returned her smile. Yawning, she turned to Johnny and asked, "Johnny, could you show us the house now? I'm a little tired."  
"Sure, Moriah," he answered. "Follow me, it's just a little way up the street. It's fully furnished, and I have laid in a supply of blood for you in the fridge. You needn't worry about the sun, because the windows are shaded and equipped with heavy drapes."  
"Thank you, Johnny," she said. "It seems that you have thought of everything."  
He smiled at her. "I tried."  
LaCroix and Nick picked up the bags, then they followed Johnny up the side walk with Moriah walking between them. Johnny stopped in front of the house and turned to Moriah. He started to speak to her, but instead suddenly dropped the keys in Moriah's hand and excused himself. He said something about having to work in the morning and checking on something before he went to bed, then walked rapidly away.  
Moriah glanced at the keys in her hand, then watched Johnny walk away. She wondered why he had left so abruptly. She had her answer when she turned towards LaCroix. His face held the icy stare that he was so famous for and it followed Johnny's departure. She was more than a little concerned. He rarely exhibited jealousy around other male vampires, but human males were a different matter. Maybe it was because she was still so much human herself, but she noticed that when she received any attention from a human, his posture became more rigid and his eyebrow arched just a little higher than usual. She moved closer to him and wrapped one hand around his arm while she ran the other hand up and down his sleeve. By tugging on his coat, she was able to force him to glance down at her. She met his icy glare with a warm smile and the ice began to slowly melt. He reached over and placed his hand on top of hers, caressing it with his thumb.  
"Lucien, it is still a while before light if you wish to show Nick the town," she suggested, smiling. "I'll be all right while your gone. You know that Billy cannot hurt me."  
Nick smiled at Moriah. "Yes, LaCroix, do show me the town." He knew that the town could be walked from end to end in less than thirty minutes, but he also knew that Moriah was trying to persuade LaCroix to relax.  
LaCroix slowly shook his head and looked between his fledglings. Nick, he would and could ignore, but not Moriah. He was helpless before her and compelled to always do as she asked, within reason of course.  
He smiled at her. "Yes, Little One, I think that you right. I think that Nicolas does need to see the town, and I could use the exercise. Leave the bags and we will bring them in when we return."  
"Stuff and nonsense," Moriah said, reaching for her bag and theirs, too. "You, two, go on. I can manage just fine." Before she turned and walked to the house, she said, "Go on, now. Go."  
When she finally convinced them to fly off into the night, she turned and walked to the front door. The house was an old rock house, the kind that she always liked. All the stones were different shapes and sizes, held together with cement. She slipped the key into the lock and turned it, then pushed the door open. Dropping the bags on the floor, she turned and locked the door. She picked up the bags and walked through the house. Looking at all three bedrooms, she selected the one that she wanted and placed her bag on the bed, then she put LaCroix's and Nick's bags in the other two bedrooms. She walked back through the house, looking at the furniture and other things that the house held. Johnny was right, the whole house was furnished. It had a sufficient supply of linens, towels, and blood. There was also a twenty-five inch television with cable and a stereo.  
While she waited for them to return, Moriah unpacked her bag, then curled up on the sofa with a small glass of blood to watch television. She found herself growing drowsy and her eyelids growing heavy. She closed her eyes for just a moment and gave into the feelings of sleep.  
A few minutes later her eyes flew open. She was receiving vampire tingles, but they were not LaCroix or Nick. She glanced out the window into the yard and saw Billy standing by the street. She did not find it surprising that he had not given her a chance to settle in before showing up to harass her. Deciding that she might as well have her first encounter with the leader of the redneck vampires, vampire to vampire, she stepped out onto the porch. Billy was just as ugly and nasty as he was when she last saw him before she lost her human form. The sight of him still made a shiver run down her back.  
"Billy," she called. "What are you doing out there? Here to cause trouble?"  
"Not yet," he called back, taking a few steps towards her. "Little Gal, just heard that you were back and wanted to see if it's true."  
Moriah stepped off the porch onto the sidewalk. "Well, as you can see, it is. Here I am in the flesh, so to speak."  
"Did you come back alone?" he asked, taking a few steps towards her. "I don't feel no other vampires in there."  
"What do you think?"  
"You probably brought that fancy man back with you, your master. From what I saw, he wouldn't let you very far out of his sight."  
Moriah smiled. "And you would be absolutely correct."  
"I know I wouldn't leave a fledgling that looked like you alone, Little Gal," Billy commented, stepping closer to her.  
"I'm quite capable of taking care of myself," Moriah said, folding her arms across her chest.  
Billy stopped a couple of feet away from Moriah. The odor that he was emitting was so stifling that she had to put her hand up to her nose and try to catch her breath.  
"We'll just see how good you protect yourself," he said, reaching for her.  
Moriah reached out to avert his hand, but his other hand reached around and grabbed her. He was physically larger than she was, so even though she was stronger, she was at a little disadvantage. Wiggling and rising up in the air, she slowly loosened his grip on her. She had almost freed herself when something or someone jerked Billy away from her and threw him through the air. She flew through the air with him, but was able to stop herself from falling and hovered a few feet above the ground. LaCroix and Nick were standing over Billy and glaring down at him. She, in turn, glared at them, how dare they interrupt her fun. At the sound of Billy's voice, she turned her attentions back to him.  
"Little Gal, you only said that you brought your fancy man. You lied, you brought two fancy men back with you," Billy accused from his place on the ground.  
"Why, Billy, you didn't ask how many people I brought with me," Moriah said, smirking. "You only asked specifically about Lucien."  
"Who's the other fancy man? A lover?" Billy sneered.  
"My brother," she answered.  
"A brother who doesn't take kindly to his sister being harassed," Nick said, smiling.  
"Well, I said that I wasn't here to cause trouble yet. I just wanted to see how you felt in my arms, now that you are a vampire. Since you have company now, I think that I'll get out of here."  
"Bye, Billy," Moriah called, sweetly. "But as I said, I don't need any help to protect myself against you."  
She watched Billy fly away, then Moriah turned and stormed into the house, ignoring both LaCroix and Nick. She was more than a little miffed at them for showing up when she thought that she had everything under control. A few more seconds and she would have been free of Billy on her own. Walking through the door, she left it wide open and curled back up on the sofa in front of the television.  
LaCroix had not said a word during the whole episode and he still did not speak as he turned to follow Moriah into the house.  
As Nick followed him, he asked, "Is she angry with us?"  
"Yes, Nicolas," he sighed. "I am afraid that she is."  
"Why? What did we do?"  
"I have an idea, but I think it would be best to ask her, but not right now."  
Nick shook his head, he could not believe that this simple little person's reactions affected LaCroix the way that they did. He had never before cared if anyone was angry with him, he either would ignore them or squash them as if he was stepping on a bug. She seemed to know more about him, then LaCroix knew about himself, and she knew exactly what it took to manage him. Nick interrupted his thoughts when he realized that he was the only one left outside. He turned towards the house and followed LaCroix inside.  
Once inside, Nick turned and locked the door, then he and LaCroix walked silently through the room.  
Moriah was never able to stay angry with them for very long. "It's all right," she sighed before they left the room. She patted the sofa beside her. "Come here, Lucien."  
LaCroix stopped before he reached the hallway, turned around, and looked back at her. "You are not angry anymore?" he questioned.  
"No, I can't stay angry at you, as much as I want to be," she admitted. When Nick turned and looked at her, she said, "I'm not angry with you, either."  
"Why were you angry to begin with?" Nick asked, walking over and sitting in one of the chairs across from her.  
She looked up at LaCroix, who was leaning against the door frame, smiling at her. He was always smiling at her, but no one except her, knew it. She also knew, that he knew why she was angry.  
She looked at Nick. "I didn't need your help. I had everything under control. I am not a helpless female."  
"Sorry about that, but I didn't touch him. LaCroix did."  
"It's all right. It's better than not having anyone care at all."  
LaCroix smiled softly at her from his position in the doorway.  
"So, that was one of the redneck vampires that you speak of so highly," Nick said, sarcastically, sitting in the chair at the end of the sofa..  
"Yes," she said. "That was their leader, Billy, Johnny's brother."  
"Is he a good representative of the rest of the group?"  
"I would say so," Moriah answered, screwing up her face. "He's the ugliest and the smelliest. He is also the one that pulled me from the car the night that I was brought across. When you are accustomed to classy, educated, and mannerly vampires, such as you and Lucien, it is a little hard to be around something like that and not break out in goose bumps."  
LaCroix raised his eyebrow. "Some break out in goose bumps near me."  
Moriah laughed. "That is not from being disgusted at the sight and smell of you, that is from the sensuousness that you exude," Moriah commented, smiling, then she turned to Nick. "You, too. As if you hadn't notice, vampires ooze with sex appeal. Let's correct that, most vampires ooze sex appeal. This group definitely does not, but all of the ones at home do, especially to humans."  
"Oh," LaCroix said, urging her to speak further while Nick looked on with interest.  
"Yes, how do you think that you attracted me? Your voice totally mesmerized me from the first time that I heard it. Your eyes are absolutely the most beautiful shade of blue that I have ever seen. Besides you knew exactly what you were doing, you've done it for hundred of years. It is just that this time, it did not result in a meal."  
LaCroix walked towards the sofa as he spoke. "I never did anything to attract you. I did not even know or cared that you existed until you made your presence known by walking into the club that night. It was also your audacity at approaching me in the middle of the club, and your obvious interest in me even knowing what I was and what I was capable of that kept you safe."  
"See, that's my point. You did nothing, but I was still attracted to you."  
"What about me?" Nick asked.  
"You too I suppose, but you don't have any of Lucien's cocky self- assuredness in you and your whining was an instant turn- off, but that is just me. Natalie and a multitude of other females obviously see something in you."  
"You have a strange knack for seeing things inside people," Nick commented.  
"Always have," she remarked. "It comes in handy sometimes and is a pain others."  
LaCroix sat down beside her on the sofa. "You are always surprising me with your insight. If you choose to, you would be make great hunter. You would know exactly what it would take to lure in each victim."  
Moriah turned and leaned against him. "I hope that I'm never forced to do such things. Even thinking about hunting humans for food makes me shudder." She paused for a moment. "On to happier topics. I suppose your arrival had one good result. At least, Billy doesn't know the level of my strength yet. I can still surprise him."  
"I just bet you can," Nick said, grinning. "You're always surprising me."  
"And, me," LaCroix whispered in her ear.  
A silence descended on the room. It was a very comfortable, contented silence, and LaCroix's were the last words uttered. The three of them sat quietly, staring at the hypnotic, alternating light on the television until Moriah rose from the sofa. She picked up her glass and after taking it to the kitchen, went to her room.  
Moriah sat at the dressing table in front of a blank mirror, brushing her hair. She did not know why they always removed the mirrors, it did not bother her to look at a mirror and not see herself. It occurred to her that maybe they removed the mirrors, so that humans who crossed their paths would not notice their lack of refection. She was gazing intently into the mirror when LaCroix entered the room and stood behind her. Kneeling down beside her, he watched her closely. He saw no reflection in the mirror, except that of the room.  
He placed his chin on her shoulder and asked, "What are you looking at so intently? I see no reflection. Moriah, do you want me to remove the mirror?"  
She turned her head and kissed his cheek. "No, Lucien. Leave them. I'm not looking at anything, just thinking. That is precisely what I was thinking about, why are all the mirrors always removed. It doesn't bother me to look in one and not see myself. I rather like them."  
"You are one of the few, most regard it as an absence of a soul."  
"That is hogwash. Can you tell that I am from Texas?" she remarked, smiling. "We cannot lack a soul and experience the range of emotions that we do or know right from wrong. There has to be another reason for the lack of a reflection, maybe we have to earn one or we live on a different plain of existence."  
Placing his lips against her ear, he whispered, "Your mind works in the strangest way and has some of the weirdest things in it, but I like it. You make me think Nothing is cut and dry for you. I tell you that is the way it is, but you don't always believe me. You feel that there has to be another explanation and you are right quite often." He paused for a moment. "I did not mean to upset you, by interfering with your encounter with Billy. I just don't like taking chances on losing you and ending up alone again."  
When he finished speaking, LaCroix moved his lips down and kissed her neck, causing Moriah to drop her brush to the floor. His kisses always elicited such reactions from her, she became totally lost in them and this time was no different. The minute that she turned her head and his lips were on hers, she lost herself in the feelings that welled up inside her. No one had ever affected her the way that he did. She liked the feelings and the release of the feelings, she did not know why he had thought that she would not. At this point, there was nothing about her life that she did not like, except maybe drinking blood.  
Later, as they were lying in bed, Moriah leaned on her elbow and traced LaCroix's facial features with her finger. "It's such a nice face," she commented. "Such gentle features and expressive eyes, but it can look so frightening."  
"Oh?" he questioned, grabbing her hand and placing a kiss on it.  
Sitting up, she said, "Yes, poor Johnny. What a look you gave him earlier. You know that you never ever have anything to be jealous of. There is no one but you. The very first time that I mentioned calling Johnny after the cross over, you reacted much the same way."  
LaCroix stared at her, but did not answer. "Well?" she coaxed.  
He hesitated a little while longer, before answering her. "I will admit nothing. I am not jealous."  
"Yeah, right," Moriah said, rolling over and pulling the cover up around her. "If you say so."  
LaCroix turned on his side and looked at her back. "Wait a minute! You don't believe me?"  
Moriah rolled over to face him. "Not really. Remember, I'm a old hand at jealously. I know it when I see it and it was all over your face."  
"You, two, seem to get along so well."  
"Well, so do we. I like Johnny as a friend, he was my first friend when I arrived in town. We were both raised here in Texas. His greeting was not unusual for this area of the country. I was already in love with you when I met him." She kissed his forehead, then remarked, "Still am."  
LaCroix stared into her eyes, kissed her forehead, then pulled her into his arms and closed his eyes. For all of his cockiness and apparent self-assuredness, Moriah found that he suffered from the same insecurities as anyone else, it was just harder to make him admit it. She lifted up and placed her lips on his, then laid down and watched the light grow on the other side of the drapes before closing her eyes.  
  
It was a few days before Moriah saw Billy again. She knew that he would come to her, so she went about her business until he appeared again. Besides, she still had no idea what she would do to him, if anything.  
While they waited for Billy to come to them, she, LaCroix, and Nick enjoyed the countryside. There were evening strolls and flights around the lake. She liked the city, but she also liked the night sounds and smells of the country. It had been a while since Nick had spent time in a country setting, and was enjoying himself immensely. LaCroix was content just to be wherever Moriah was at the moment.  
The county fair started the third night that they were in town. It had been a long time since Moriah had been to a country fair. Last time that she went was when she was a teenager in high school. The fair was to have the usual livestock shows and competitions; carnival rides and booths; a dance; and fireworks. LaCroix saw her eyes light up when Johnny told her about the fair and all of its trappings, so he resigned himself to taking her. She told him that he did not have to go, that she was more than capable of taking herself. Nick even offered to take her if LaCroix did not want to go, admitting that he was looking forward to it himself.  
LaCroix looked at his children and shook his head, thinking to himself that they were indeed his children. It amazed him the way that Moriah loved the little things that he had always considered childish. She was always able to draw him and Nick into her little escapades. Nick was always more than a willing participant while he accompanied her only because she wanted him to do so. He usually had to admit later that he did enjoy himself though. Both of the older vampires appreciated Moriah's ability to find pleasure in the simpler things. Having her with them was slowly renewing some of the long forgotten simple pleasures of both their childhood's.  
So it was that Moriah had both male vampires escorting her to the county fair. She was so excited that she was dressed and waiting in the living room way before dark. When LaCroix stepped into the living room, she was curled up on the sofa channel surfing. He leaned against the doorway and smiled. There were many times when he tried not to smile at her, was determined not to smile at her, but he always lost. The smile always came to his lips anyway and now was no different. He shrugged his shoulders and walked quietly over to sofa, then sat down beside her. She turned off the television and dropped the remote on the sofa beside her, then turned to LaCroix. Pulling herself up on her knees, she wrapped her arms around his neck.  
After placing a kiss on his check, she said quietly, "Lucien, you don't have to go tonight if you don't want to. I don't mind, really. Nick will be with me if you're worried about Billy, but you shouldn't. I can take care of myself."  
"Come here," he whispered, pulling her into his lap. "I go, because I want to go. I never do anything that I don't wish to do." As he spoke, he caressed her cheek.  
She ran her hand back through his hair. "Are you sure? You do many things that I know that you wouldn't normally do on your own."  
"Moriah, you can rest assured that I have never done anything that I did not really want to do. Even you cannot force me to be what I am not. You have only brought certain things to the surface again." He paused, looking longingly into her eyes. "Thank you, Little One," he whispered.  
A big smile spread across her face. "You are most welcome, My Love," she said, kissing his cheek.  
Knowing that Nick would walk into the room any minute, she crawled off LaCroix's lap and sat beside him on the sofa. He reached over and pulled her next to him, then left his arm around her. She glanced up at him, and he smiled down at her to let her know that he did not care whether Nick saw or not. She picked up the television remote and snuggled next to him to wait for sunset. He glanced down at her, then tightened his arm around her and shook his head.  
Nick did not make an appearance until it was dark outside and time for them to leave. He decided when they arrived in town to allow Moriah and LaCroix as much time together without him as he could. He did not want to cause any hurt feelings or unnecessary conflicts. He was actually enjoying himself and wanted the opportunity to travel with Moriah again. If she had been around in the beginning, things may have been different between him and LaCroix. She definitely had a positive effect on both of them.  
Johnny had arranged for he and his wife, Lauren, arranged to meet them at a spot just outside the fair grounds. Moriah had not seen Lauren since before her cross-over. She and Lauren were never very close, so she did not know that much about her. She wondered how she would feel about being with vampires. She felt sure that Johnny probably already told her that Moriah was a vampire.  
They flew from the house to the spot, arriving at the same time as Johnny and Lauren. They stepped out of a clump of trees and walked towards Johnny and Lauren.  
Johnny smiled and stepped forward. "I'm so glad that you came," he said.  
Moriah, as well as LaCroix and Nick, stared at the woman standing beside him. She was much taller than Moriah and much larger in stature. She had long red hair and green eyes. Moriah had never found her particularly appealing. She had a very rough edge to her character. As a vampire, so would have given Billy a run for his money.  
Johnny pushed Lauren towards them and said, "Lauren, you remember Moriah? And, this is her husband, Lucien and her brother, Nick."  
Moriah had not told him to introduce them in that manner, and she wondered if LaCroix had done so. She had her suspicions confirmed when she looked up at him and he nodded his head. LaCroix mumbled some pleasantry, then wrapped is hand around Moriah's.  
Lauren reached for Moriah's hand and shook it. When Lauren touched her, something about her touch made Moriah very uneasy. Even though she was not a vampire, Lauren definitely had a great amount of darkness in her. It was a darkness that Moriah had not felt before. LaCroix did not have it nor did any of the other vampires. She had to suppress the urge to shudder when Lauren took hold of her hand. LaCroix detected the apprehension in her and tightened his grip on her hand.  
Nick, on the other hand, was his usual charming, pleasant self. After exchanging words with Lauren, he walked with Johnny towards the ticket booth. Moriah noticed that the only time that Johnny had any bodily contact with Lauren was when he pushed her towards them. Otherwise, he kept his hands to himself and stayed several paces away from her. There was obviously something wrong.  
When Lauren stayed behind to talk with Moriah, she kept hand securely in LaCroix's. Moriah and Lauren talked as the three of them slowly followed Johnny and Nick. LaCroix placed himself between the two women, so they had to look around him to talk which was fine with Moriah. She felt better having more space between her and Lauren.  
"Hi, Lauren," Moriah said, forcing a smile. "It is nice to see you again."  
"It is nice to see you again," Lauren cooed. "You weren't married when you were here before."  
"No, we were married right after Lucien took me home."  
"You're a vampire, aren't you?" Lauren blurted out.  
Moriah answered her question with a question. "Why do you ask?"  
"Oh, I knew that Billy and Johnny wanted you the minute that you arrived in town. Then, when you quit work and disappeared so fast, I could only come to one conclusion -- that Billy got you."  
"So, you think that I'm a part of Billy's gang?" Moriah questioned, trying to ignore the comment about Johnny.  
Lauren glanced up at the dignified vampire walking at Moriah's side, then quickly answered, "Oh no, you would still live here if he did. Billy wouldn't have let you leave. I assume that Lucien is your master and that Nick is one of you, too."  
Moriah wondered how she could just look at them and tell. She supposed that like herself, Lauren had been around Billy enough to recognize a vampire when she encountered one. Before she could think of another question to use to side-step the issue, Johnny and Nick saved her by returning with the tickets. When Johnny looked around for them from the ticket booth, he saw that Lauren was looking around LaCroix, trying to talk to Moriah. The look on Moriah's face led him to believe that she was not comfortable with the conversation. He threw the money on the counter and hurriedly walked back to join them with Nick in tow. He stopped in front of Lauren, and caused her to almost run into him. Nick stepped over on Moriah's other side.  
"Lauren, have you been bugging Moriah and Lucien?" he asked, grabbing her arm.  
Moriah slipped her other hand into Nick's. She felt better with both of them there. "She's been asking if I'm a vampire -- if all three of us are vampires," Moriah said quietly.  
A stern look came over Johnny's face. "I already told you that Billy's gang did not get her. What more can I say?"  
"I know that is what you said, but I know a vampire when I see one," Lauren hissed. "All three of them look like vampires to me."  
"Now, how would you know?" Johnny questioned. "They don't look like Billy or any of his gang to me."  
Lauren saw that it was useless to argue with him. "I guess I don't know. They are definitely a cut above Billy's gang, so I guess that I'm mistake." She turned to Moriah and said, "Sorry to bother you."  
The tone of Lauren's voice caused Moriah to cringe. Dealing with the amorous advances of a male was much easier than dealing with a jealous female and that was the way that Lauren was behaving. She moved a little too close to LaCroix and held his hand a little too tight, causing him great concern.  
Johnny looked at Moriah and seeing how uncomfortable she was, he pulled Lauren away from her. "Would you excuse me for a moment? I need to talk to my wife. Go and enjoy the fair. I'll catch up to you later."  
LaCroix dropped Moriah's hand, then turned to face her. "Moriah, are you all right?" he asked, gently pushing her hair out of her face.  
"Yes," she answered, as a shiver ran through her. "Lauren gave me the creeps. There is something about her, something that is almost as evil as Divia."  
Another shiver ran through her, causing Nick to drop her hand. "I felt both of those shivers," he remarked quietly. "They were quite violent. Are you sure that you want to continue on into the fair?"  
"Yes, please. I've been so looking forward to it and Lauren is just a human."  
"Nicolas, hand me the tickets," LaCroix said, extending his hand. "Little One, you shall have your fair."  
Nick placed the tickets in his hand. As they walked towards the gate, he commented, "It has been ages since I've played any carnival games or rode any rides. If you want to stay grounded, I'll take Moriah on the rides."  
"Thank you, Nicolas," LaCroix said, peering through the gate. After a moment, he added, "I think that I will take you up on your earlier offer. Moriah is right, this is definitely not my style. Would you mind staying with her, and I will meet you later?"  
Nick reached for Moriah's hand. "I have no problem with it whatsoever."  
Moriah looked between them, then asked, "Don't I have a say-so?"  
They both looked at her and said, "No!"  
Her eyes grew large and she was about to speak when LaCroix said, "Do not look at me that way, Moriah. I was only teasing you. Of course, you have a voice, but it was your idea, remember?"  
She tightened her hand around Nick's. "I know," she laughed. "I just wanted a say-so in the matter." Pulling on Nick's hand, she said, " See you later, Lucien. Come on, Nick."  
As Nick was being dragged away, he smiled weakly at LaCroix. "I have to do what the lady says," he laughed.  
LaCroix watched them walked through the gate, then muttered to himself, "So do I, Nicolas. So do I."  
  
While LaCroix flew back to the house to await their return, Moriah and Nick walked through the fair. Actually, she skipped through the fair grounds or was trying to, but Nick maintained a tight grip on her hand as they walked.  
"Nick, you don't have to hold my hand," Moriah complained. "I can take care of myself. Besides, I can't play any games or ride any rides with you holding my hand."  
"If anything happened to you while you were in my care, there would be hell to pay. I don't think that I want LaCroix that angry with me," he said quietly.  
She stopped walking and jerked her hand out of his. "Whom would you rather have angry at you, him or me?"  
Nick stared down at the little figure standing defiant in front of him. "That is a hard one. You're both bad in your own ways. I'll make a deal with you. You never stray more than two paces away from me and I won't grab for your hand."  
Moriah laughed and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Deal!"  
Johnny walked up as she placed the kiss on his cheek. "Where's Lucien?" he asked, looking around.  
Nick smiled. "This sort of thing is not exactly his cup of tea, so he went back to the house to wait for us. The little girl here was left in my charge."  
Johnny laughed. "I see that. Are you sure that you can handle her?"  
"No," Nick said, shaking his head. "I don't think anyone can."  
"Gee," Moriah said. "Once again, I'm not standing here, am I?" She shook her head. "What did you say to Lauren?"  
"I'm so sorry about Lauren's prying," Johnny apologized. "She's been this way about you ever since you left town. There is something about you that causes her to be very jealous. I don't understand why. There was never anything between us, although I will admit that I wish there were."  
"You do?" Moriah questioned. "So, Lucien was right about you."  
"He was?" he said apprehensively. "What did he say?"  
"He said that you were in love with me."  
"Oh, and is he angry with me?"  
"No. He knows where my heart lies."  
"So do I," Johnny sighed.  
Nick hurriedly changed the subject. "What did you tell Lauren about us?"  
"Nothing," Johnny said, shaking his head. "I just allowed her to rant and rave, then I walked away."  
"You know that I can erase her memory of us if you wish. Then, you wouldn't have to put up with her jealousy," Moriah offered.  
"You can do that," Johnny asked amazed.  
A look of disbelief came over her face. "Of course. How do you think that we keep our existence secret and stop the Enforcers from going after innocent humans who stumble onto our secret?" She paused for a moment. "Come to think of it. Nick, why haven't the Enforcers visited here before now. There are quite a few people here who know of Billy and his gang?"  
"I don't know," Nick said, shaking his head. "They are still a mystery to me. Remember, they never came after you when you stumbled into the club."  
Moriah motioned for Nick to bend down towards her. "Lucien stopped them," she whispered in his ear so that Johnny could not hear.  
"Oh," he remarked. "We'll have to ask LaCroix about the Enforcers later."  
Johnny thought about asking them who the Enforcers were, but since neither seemed to know much about them, he chose to keep his question for LaCroix. At the same time, Moriah decided to take care of Lauren's memory without Johnny's consent. She appeared to be too dangerous to have possession of such knowledge. She planned on doing it when Lauren joined Johnny in a few minutes, but she never came. Johnny finally excused himself to search for her.  
After Johnny left, Moriah cleared her head of her thoughts of Lauren and pulled on Nick's hand. "Come on," she laughed. "Win me a teddy bear."  
Nick had to laugh too. "No one has asked me to win them a teddy bear in a very long time. All right, Moriah," he said, allowing her to pull him away. "What color?"  
  
They spent the next three hours with Moriah dragging Nick around the grounds, then Nick dragging Moriah back across the grounds. They rode rides, played the carnival games, and looked at the livestock. They were definitely having the mindless kind of fun that everyone needs from time to time. Towards the end of the evening, Moriah was carrying three rather large teddy bears and Nick was dragging two more stuffed animals, an elephant and a dragon, behind him.  
Moriah stopped and set her teddy bears on the ground. Laughing, she said, "You know we can't take these home. Lucien would never let us live it down, especially you."  
Nick set his two on the ground with hers and stared at the menagerie. "He wouldn't say a thing because they are yours. You asked for them. He can't deny you anything, you know that."  
She smiled. "You actually won them all, with a little vampire help. Wouldn't you like to take one home to Natalie?"  
A smile came to his face. "She would like that," he said quietly. "How would I carry it back?"  
"We could ship it back to her," Moriah suggested. "She would definitely be shocked to receive such a gift from you."  
He smiled softly. "She would know that you had a hand in it. You have a definite signature. It is very easy to know when you have been involved in something. LaCroix has your signature all over him, and I suppose, so do I and Nat."  
She stared at him and wrinkled her brow. "Is that a bad thing?"  
He quickly shook his head. "No, I think that we are all a little more at peace thanks to you. I just wished that Nat and I had what you and LaCroix have. I have been thinking seriously about bringing her across after spending so much time with you."  
Moriah's demeanor turned very serious. "Nick, I will agree that you are getting close to a deadline, but you have to be absolutely sure. Although Natalie is aging to the point of no return, bringing her across might not be your answer. I don't worry about her, but your attitude could ruin the whole relationship. Especially, if you aren't willing to fully accept her as a vampire and a worth while creature." Without thinking, she blurted out, "I would bring her across myself, but I want no fledglings nor do I wish to sink my fangs into a human."  
The moment that she said it, she wished that she could have taken the statement back, but it was too late. She wondered what he would do if he knew of the promise that Natalie had forced her to make. She hoped that she would never have to reveal it to him or LaCroix.  
As she was wondering how to extract herself from the conversation, she felt relieved to feel a very familiar presence. "Lucien is here," she announced.  
"Yes, I am," a voice said quietly from behind her. "I came to see how my children were doing."  
"He missed you," Nick remarked, grinning from ear to ear."  
"Nicolas," LaCroix started to reprimand his fledgling, but changed his mind about the reprimand and allowed him to enjoy his evening. Looking over Moriah's shoulder at her little zoo, he remarked instead, "I am to assume that my children had fun. I am also to assume that we are taking these home."  
"That is what we are trying to decide," Moriah said, smiling up at him. "Dare I ask what you think about it?"  
He smiled at her and shook his head. "Whatever you want to do with them is fine with me, you know that."  
Moriah decided to give them away. She picked up her three teddy bears and began looking for some deserving children. "Do you mind if we gave them away, Nick?" she asked, as she began to pick her way through the crowd  
"Fine with me," he said, picking up his two and following her through the crowd. "I had my fun winning them."  
LaCroix stood for a moment, watching them before he quietly followed Moriah. He shook his head as he walked behind her. No one in his past would believe his behavior now. Sometimes even he did not believe it. He was not one to complain though; he would not want it any other way. At the moment, he wanted to reach out and take her in his arms, but refrained from doing so because of the crowd around him.  
Moriah and Nick found a family with five children and offered them the stuffed animals. They had no trouble persuading them to accept the gift. When each child was clutching their animal, Moriah took Nick's hand and they backed up into the shadows where LaCroix was waiting for them.  
In the cover of darkness, LaCroix placed his hands on Moriah' s shoulders as she backed up against him. He leaned over and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Are you ready to leave now, Little One?" he whispered. "I thought that you might wish to take an evening flight with me."  
She leaned back against him. "My Love, I would like that very much," she whispered, placing her hand on top of his.  
LaCroix lifted her hand to his lips, then proceeded to lead her through the crowd with Nick walking on her other side. He had no intention of accompanying them on their flight, but he did not wish to remain at the fair alone either. When they reached the gate, he planned to go off on his own.  
When they did reach the gate, a blood curdling scream coming from the direction of the Ferris wheel interrupted their plans. Looking up towards the scream, they saw that Billy and a few members of his gang were flying around the top of the Ferris wheel, teasing and harassing the passengers. Unfortunately, the lights were bright enough for everyone in the fairgrounds to see them. As they flew around the Ferris wheel, they knocked one of the cars loose, and it was leaning sideways. A teenage couple trapped in the car were slowly sliding to the open end of the car. They would eventually slide out of the car unless someone intervened.  
Moriah turned to LaCroix and Nick. "I'm going up there. Do you think that can you douse the lights, so no one sees me?"  
"Consider it done," Nick said, moving away from her with LaCroix close behind.  
They moved back into the shadows and shot up into the air. Moriah circled around the outside of the grounds to give LaCroix and Nick time to extinguished the lights. They flew in opposite directions while Moriah hovered just out of view and out of reach of Billy and his boys. She had to perform a few evasive maneuvers to stay out of their reach, but she managed. In less than five minutes the fairgrounds were in complete darkness, except for a few flashlights on the ground. When the lights were out, LaCroix and Nick flew up to assist Moriah if she needed them.  
Moriah flew in under the cover of darkness and wrapped her arms around both teens. While LaCroix and Nick ensured that the other vampires did not interfere, she flew outside the fairgrounds and set them on the ground. Before she left to join LaCroix and Nick, she pulled the teenagers into the light of the moon. She erased their memories of her, Billy, and his gang, just in case they had seen any of them flying. She sent them back into the fairgrounds then disappeared into the air. When she was comfortably floating between LaCroix and Nick, she noticed that there was no sign of Billy or his gang.  
"Where are they?" she asked.  
"They disappeared the minute that LaCroix and I showed up," Nick answered as he scanned the ground. "Are the kids all right?"  
"Yes, they're fine, just scared and no memory of what happened."  
"You do a good job of cleaning up after yourself," LaCroix remarked. "I will not have to worry about the Enforcers coming for you."  
"Remind me to ask you about them when we are finished here. I have quite a few questions," Moriah said as she scanned the ground. "I still feel them. Where can they be?":  
As she hovered between them, they heard another scream. "What now?" LaCroix grimaced. He wanted no more interruptions; he wanted Moriah for a quiet evening -- alone.  
They dove towards the scream and landed amongst the crowd. The lights were still out, so it was pitch black. The humans could no see them, but the vampires could see quite well. They found Billy holding a struggling and screaming Lauren over his head. Johnny stood to the side, doing nothing to help her. It appeared to Moriah that Lauren was screaming a little too dramatically and flaying her arms around a little too wildly. It was almost as if she were in a theater production, playing a role.  
Surrounding them was a mixed crowd of about fifteen or twenty humans and vampires. The humans, not being able to see, froze where they stood and listened to the struggle while the vampires urged Billy onward. Moriah pushed her way through the crowd and planted herself in front of Billy. She did not know why she was doing this, because she was still receiving bad vibrations from Lauren. There was a human in apparent trouble, so she had to intervene. She had sworn to protect innocent humans, or at least humans that she thought to be innocent.  
"Billy!" Moriah yelled. "Put her down. NOW!"  
LaCroix stood back with Nick and watched her carefully. As he watched, he noticed that the minute that Lauren heard Moriah, she screamed louder and her movements became more pronounced. She was right, there was something about Lauren that did not ring true. Luckily, she was already suspicious of Lauren, so he knew that she would be careful. She was just a small thing, but she was as large as anyone he knew and just as tough. He crossed his arms over his chest and gazed at her with pride. Nick glanced over at him and shook his head. He had never seen such a look of love and pride in LaCroix's face. He had to admit that he was proud of her too, but he did not like the idea of her facing Billy alone.  
When he tried to follow her, LaCroix put his hand on his shoulder. "No, Nicolas, if she needs us, she will call. Watch the others closely; we want no surprises."  
"Oh look who's here," Billy taunted. "The fledgling. Well Little Gal, where are your fancy men?"  
Moriah put her hands on her hips. "They're around, but I don't need them to handle you. Now, put Lauren down!"  
Lauren stopped screaming so that she could hear Moriah. It was not until Billy shook her that she started screaming again. It was most definitely suspicious.  
Billy made no effort to comply with her request. "What do you think that you can do?"  
"This," Moriah said, moving towards him.  
Before Billy knew what had happened, Moriah sped through the air, grabbed Lauren from his grasp, and set her on the ground beside Johnny. When Moriah moved past Johnny, he felt the wind on his face and she heard him mumble something under his breath. She thought that she heard, "And they call the wind, Moriah." She would definitely ask him about it later.  
While Billy recovered from the shock at having Lauren jerked from his hands, Moriah walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He whirled around and lost his balance, causing him to land on the ground with a "thud."  
Moriah pushed her hair back and stared down at him. "Now leave! Before I become really angry."  
"How did you do that, Little Gal?" he asked, picking himself up from the ground.  
"Do what?" she asked innocently.  
"Grab Lauren out of my hands."  
Moriah gestured towards the air with her hand. "Oh that, that was nothing, I do things, like that all the time. Just as I take care of bullies, like you all the time."  
His eyes grew large. "Whoa there, you're just a fledging."  
"Yes, that's right, I am just a fledgling as you say. But, I can still whip you. As to how, just ask my master," she taunted, smiling.  
"I will," Billy said, putting his hands to his mouth and yelling, "Hey, Old Man, where are you? I know you have to be here. You won't let the little gal too far away from you."  
Moriah cringed, LaCroix hated being called, "old man" and she hoped that he curbed his temper. She glanced behind her and saw him push his way through the crowd. He stepped up beside her and glared at Billy. If looks could kill a vampire, Billy would be dead from the look that he was giving him.  
"I am right here, Fledgling" LaCroix said calmly. "And, although she does not need my protection, I would never leave her alone with someone of your character."  
Billy pointed towards Moriah. "What's the little gal talking about, she says that she can whip me? And, what's wrong with my character?"  
"Exactly what she says," LaCroix answered him. "She is not like the fledglings that you are accustomed to bringing across. As for your character, it lacks breeding, education, and refinement."  
"It could also use some soap and water," Moriah added, holding her nose.  
"Now, will you please leave, so that I may spend some private time with her," LaCroix insisted.  
Billy reached for Moriah. "No, I want her for myself. I always have."  
"Well, I don't want you!" Moriah exclaimed, pulling away from him. "I don't even want you to touch me."  
When Billy's hand touched Moriah's arm, it took all of LaCroix's control to keep from reaching for him and exacting his own brand of punishment. He knew that she wanted to take care of him herself, so he stood very still and very rigid. "If Billy harmed her, his existence was over," he vowed to himself.  
Moriah grabbed Billy's hand as he touched her and tried to hold it tightly in hers. Since her master was of an older generation than his and her personal character much stronger, she was more powerful than he was in vampire powers. She was, however, at a disadvantage physically, because he was so much bigger than she was. She would have to use both hands and a lot of leverage to hold him in her grip. Luckily for her, the rest of his gang appeared to want to stay out of the altercation. She did not know if they wanted to see what she could do or if LaCroix's and Nick's presence deterred them. Finally, clasping Billy's hand in both of hers, she began to slowly twist it. At first, Billy did not seem in the least affected, but as she continued twisting, the strain showed on his face. He tried to pull free of her, but could not break her grip. When she glanced back at LaCroix, she could see him smiling at her and she felt him urging her to continue. She turned her attention back to Billy and continued to twist his arm until he was on his knees in front of her.  
"Billy, would you like to leave now and take your gang with you?" Moriah asked, staring down at him and smiling.  
Billy was about to protest, then he looked up and saw LaCroix and Nick glaring down at him and decided that for the time being, he and his gang would leave. "Yes, we'll go, but this is not over." He looked at LaCroix and said, "You stole our fledgling and we want satisfaction."  
"Satisfaction?" Moriah questioned, maintaining her grip on his hand. "What do you plan on doing? Lucien beat you alone the last time and this time there are three of us. At the moment, you are on your knees at my feet and you want satisfaction." She could not help it; she had to laugh.  
Moriah released her grip on Billy so that he could stand. "Come on guys, let's get out of here," he said. He turned to Moriah and said, "I'll be waiting for you, Little Gal. This isn't over by any means."  
"We'll see," Moriah said, backing up against LaCroix as she watched Billy and his gang fly away.  
As each vampire shot up into the air they gave Moriah a very nasty, very vicious look. LaCroix reached around and placed a protective arm around here while Nick glared at each of the gang members as they glared at Moriah.  
After the last of the gang flew away, she turned to LaCroix and Nick. "Can we erase the memories of the whole group, except for Johnny? I have never worked with a crowd this large before."  
"Nicolas and I will take care of it," LaCroix answered. "You keep Johnny with you."  
While Moriah walked through the crowd to retrieve Johnny, LaCroix and Nick worked to put everyone under a trance.  
During the whole altercation, Johnny listened to Moriah very intently. He focused all his attention on the altercation between Moriah and Billy, so he did not notice Lauren slip away after Moriah set her on the ground beside him. Now, he began to look around for her, but couldn't find her in the darkness.  
Moriah approached him. "What are you doing, Johnny?" she asked.  
"I'm looking for Lauren. She disappeared right after you set her down, but it's too dark."  
Moriah did not like the sound of it, but there was a bigger problem at the moment. "We'll look for her later. At the moment, Lucien and Nick are freezing the crowd to clean their memories of us."  
When she looked around her, she saw a crowd of frozen people all staring straight ahead. As she led Johnny back to LaCroix and Nick, she felt as if she were walking through a garden of statues. She wished that Lauren had been among them. Once again, she escaped having her mind erased.  
"Did you freeze everyone?" Johnny asked.  
"Yes, everyone but Lauren. Where is she? She disappeared earlier, too," Moriah answered.  
"I don't know. I couldn't find her earlier, either. She ended up finding me."  
"Johnny, just how many people in this town know about Billy and his gang?"  
"Quite a few. Some know and some just suspect."  
She shook her head. "That is not good. Vampires are supposed to clean up after themselves. Anyone who breaks the code is subject to a visit from the Enforcers."  
"Who and what are they?"  
"I don't know much about them, except that they make sure that the vampire code is upheld."  
"How much of this evening do we erase from their minds?" Nick asked, walking in and out of the statues.  
Moriah thought for a minute, then suggested, "Erase it all if Lucien agrees. I would just as soon not have any trouble out of them while we are here."  
"I think that would be best," LaCroix agreed. "The less humans that know about us the safer we will be."  
While LaCroix and Nick were hypnotizing the crowd, Moriah asked Johnny, "Would he really have hurt Lauren?"  
"I don't know, I honestly don't know," Johnny said, shaking his head. "He has never touched us before. Is it just me or did the whole thing seem almost staged to you?"  
"I was thinking the same thing, but thought that it was my imagination."  
"No, it was really weird," he said. "Just before he grabbed her, she called him an ugly, nasty, smelly baboon. She has never had the nerve to insult him before. I don't know if she had enough of him or she knew that he wouldn't hurt her."  
Moriah gave Lauren the benefit of the doubt. "I suppose that it was a reaction to the name calling. Lucien is upset when Billy calls him, `old man.' I can how Billy felt being called that."  
"I guess that was it," he sighed, but he was not entirely convinced.  
"Johnny, did I hear you singing earlier? I thought I heard you sing, 'They call the wind, Moriah."  
He smiled gently. "I did. I have never felt anyone move so fast. I felt the wind in my face when you flew by me -- just like the wind, just like Moriah."  
"I never thought about my name in relation to that song."  
"I did," LaCroix said softly, walking up behind her. "The first time I saw how well you took to flying, I thought that you had the perfect name."  
She beamed up at him, causing him to place his arms around her shoulders  
"Ready to release them!" Nick called.  
"Go ahead," Moriah called back. "We're ready here."  
LaCroix removed his arms from around Moriah and walked away to dispatch of the humans so that he could spend the rest of the evening alone with her. The people slowly started moving and talking amongst themselves, but the lights were still out, so they could not see to leave. None of them seemed to be aware that anything was a miss.  
Moriah walked over and wrapped her arms around LaCroix's waist. Since the lights were still off, blanketing everything a cloud of darkness, he ran his hand through her hair, then kissed the top of her head. He leaned over and kissed her while she wrapped her arms around his neck. Suddenly, a bright light blinded them. The restoral of the electricity to the fairgrounds caused all of the lights to come on at once.  
Moriah jerked back from LaCroix as he suddenly straightened up his body. They stared at each other for a moment; and in spite of herself, she began to giggle. To her, it was funny whether it was to him or not. He simply looked at her and shook his head. Her good nature never ceased to amaze him.  
The electricity was back on just in time for the evening concert. To LaCroix's surprise, there was an orchestra scheduled to play instead of the country and western band that he expected at such a function. When Moriah asked to stay for a while to see what sort of music came out of their instruments, he readily agreed. It might give him the chance to dance with her.  
He took her hand in his. "Shall we move to the outer edge of the grounds, Little One? We can still hear the music there, and I will not have be around all these humans."  
Moriah wanted him to herself anyway, so she readily agreed. "What ever you wish, My Love? I want you where I can kiss you."  
He raised his eyebrow; what was he going to do with her. Holding her hand, he steered her through the crowd gathering for the concert. All the people who had left the fair when he and Nick turned off the electricity were now streaming back into the fairgrounds. Since they were walking against the flow, LaCroix looked for a dark corner where they could fly from the grounds undetected. He finally found such a spot and pulled Moriah towards it. They shot up into the air and landed in a grove of trees a couple of hundred yards outside the fairground fence.  
The orchestra began to warm up and the notes reached out towards them. As the warming up turned into music and it floated through the trees, LaCroix pulled her into his arms and moved her to the music. She sighed softly, laying her head on his shoulder and moving along with him.  
"I was quite proud of you tonight," LaCroix whispered, kissing the top of her head. "You are more than a master could hope for. You are loyal and you actually care what happens to me. If you continue like this, I will never have to worry about the Enforcers."  
Moriah raised her head and whispered. "Of course, I care what happens to you. I can't picture life as a vampire without you. Some time soon I want you to tell me all about the Enforcers."  
"If you will lay your head on my shoulder, I will answer all your questions'.  
"Yes, My Love," she whispered, laying her head on his shoulder.  
They danced for a little while with Moriah asking questions and LaCroix giving her answers about the Enforcers. When she had all her questions answered, she lifted her head and kissed his cheek. LaCroix raised his eyebrow and shook his head, how had he been so lucky. He had been afraid to bring her across for fear that the qualities that he admired in her would disappear. To his surprise, she had kept all the qualities that he found so dear and in some cases, enhanced them. He was staring at her with so much love in his eyes that she could not help reaching up and caressing his cheek. He turned his head and kissed the palm of her hand, then he leaned over and covered her mouth with his. She stopped the kiss only when she felt her fangs begin to appear. There were still too many humans around and Billy could show at any moment. She laid her head back on his shoulder as they swayed with the music.  
He lifted his hand and ran it through her hair. "Why did you stop kissing me?" he whispered. "Afraid of Billy?"  
She raised her head and smiled. "No, not afraid," she said, shaking her head. "I just didn't want to be in the middle of something when he decided to show back up." She paused for a moment. "How could I ever be afraid of anyone when I have you by my side."  
His facial features stiffened. "He did say that he would return for you. As you say though, as long as I am here, he will not have you nor can he take you. He must realize that I would destroy him first."  
Moriah shook her head. "He has a very thick skull. He will never accept it. We may have to destroy him as much as I wouldn't want to do so."  
"We will cross that bridge when we come to it. For the moment, I want you all to myself with no interruptions," he whispered, pulling her close to him and kissing her.  
A myriad of vampire tingles ran through them, "Damn!" LaCroix exclaimed, as he quickly released Moriah.  
They moved away from each other and prepared to meet the enemy, such as it was. There was not a whole not of preparing to do, so they were ready immediately. Moriah floated up into the air and settled on a tree branch. She stretched out on the branch to watch the scene about to unfold below. LaCroix floated up and sat on a branch in the tree opposite her. He leaned back against the tree and set his feet on the branch, but instead of watching the ground, he watched Moriah.  
As Moriah watched, Billy and his gang landed on the ground below them. To her surprise, they did not appear to know that she and LaCroix were sitting in the trees above their heads. She looked at LaCroix and mouthed the words, "Don't they know that we are here?" He shook his head and put his finger to his lips, then pointed back towards the ground.  
Moriah turned her attention back to Billy and his gang who were roaming around among the trees. She focused her hearing to pick up what they said below.  
Billy yelled, "I know she's here. Now, find her."  
"But, Billy," one of the gang said. "She's more powerful than you. If she doesn't want to be found, we won't find her. If we do find her, her master will be with her and I don't want to face him again."  
Another one of the gang jabbed him with an elbow. "Do you want to make him madder? Even if you think that she can beat him, don't say it. Now shut-up and look."  
The two vampires joined the others in the search for Moriah. From her place in the tree, she had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. They were so inept and such bunglers; it was no wonder the town did not fear them. The only thing that they had going for them was their smell and nastiness, plus Billy's physical size. As vampires went, they were very poor examples and the vampires at home would have laughed them out of town.  
Moriah was so intent on the vampires below that she did not notice that one of the gang had found her. He had not sensed her; he just happened to be looking in the right tree at the right time. He floated up from behind and shoved her from her perch, causing her to tumble to the ground. The shove stunned her, and since she could not regain her balance, she landed on the ground at Billy's feet. Everything happened so fast that LaCroix did not have the time to react or come to her aid.  
Billy and the other vampires surrounded Moriah as she worked to regain her composure. When she looked down at her arm, the sleeve of her silk blouse was torn and her arm was scrapped from hitting the tree on her way down to the ground. She was angry, very angry. The scrap on her arm meant nothing to her, it would go away in a few minutes, but she had just bought the blouse and this was the first time that she had worn it. She shot up from the ground in full attack mode. Her fangs were showing and her eyes were glowing brightly.  
When LaCroix saw Moriah fall, he landed beside her a few seconds after she hit ground. The other vampires circled them as he reached down to help her to feet. The sheer force that she exerted as she shot up from the ground knocked LaCroix and the other vampires to the ground.  
From his place on the ground, LaCroix shook his head. "Billy, you are in trouble now," he warned. "I would not want to be you at the moment. You have made her angry, very angry."  
As he finished speaking, he stood up and moved away from them. He had no desire to be in the line of fire when Moriah attacked.  
Moriah hovered overhead to give LaCroix time to remove himself from her flight path. The moment that he was out of the way, she arched her back and dove towards Billy and his gang. They were just beginning to stand up when she bowled through them, scattering the vampires and knocking them back to the ground. She pulled up and hovered above them again. As they were picking themselves up, she flew through them again. This time, they landed harder and farther apart from each other. She pulled back up in the sky and floated above them again, but she was not foolish enough to try a third time. This time, they might be ready for her, and she would be the victim instead of the attacker.  
As she watched them pick themselves up, she glanced down at LaCroix who was thoroughly enjoying himself. She wondered what she should do now. Looking around her, she saw two trees the perfect distance apart. They were wide enough for her to fly through, but the others would become entangled in the branches. She swooped down and soared around Billy until she had him worked up enough to chase her. She flew slowly to allow him to fly just behind her. Although she did not think that he was smart enough to notice the trees, she did not want him to be able to pull up and out of the way before he hit them.  
LaCroix stood on the ground and shook his head. Moriah could beat Billy with shear brain power alone and would never have to exert any of her real powers. He wanted to have a better view of what she had planned for Billy, so he flew up above the trees and hovered where he had a view of the whole area. Moriah was flying towards the two trees with Billy and a few members of his gang following her when LaCroix felt Nick. He felt that he had to stop him before he interfered with Moriah's plans. He found Nick about fifty yards away from Moriah. He soared in front of him and blocked his path.  
"No, Nicolas!" he said. "Allow her to do this by herself. That is the way that she wants it."  
LaCroix's abrupt appearance startled Nick. "You aren't going to help Moriah?"  
"No, my little one does not want my help yet. Now hush and watch."  
They turned in time to see Moriah shoot through the trees and emerge on the other side. Billy, on the other hand, became entangled in the branches as did several of his gang. Moriah hovered on the other side of the trees, laughing until she cried. She heard a noise to her left and turned her head. Nick was laughing uncontrollably and even LaCroix was chuckling. She floated over to them and settled between them as they watched Billy trying to free himself from the branches.  
"Priceless, Sister Dear," Nick commented. "Priceless. What do you have planned next?"  
"I'm not sure," Moriah answered. "So far, it has all been spur of the moment reactions."  
"You do not have to do anymore," LaCroix said quietly. "I'll take care of him from this point on."  
She smiled softly and shook her head. "No, Lucien. This is my fight. I will finish it."  
They heard a noise and turned to find that Billy was free from the branches and flying towards them. LaCroix and Nick looked between them to find that Moriah had disappeared. She was streaking towards Billy so fast that they could barely make out her form in the sky. She rammed Billy, then veered upwards. She hit Billy so hard that he lost consciousness for a second and fell from the sky. He landed with a thud in the clearing where some of his gang were still standing around. They rushed to check on their fallen leader while LaCroix flew towards Moriah.  
The force with which she hit Billy worried him. He was afraid that she might have hurt herself. He reached her in a couple of seconds with Nick close behind him. "Moriah, Little One, are you all right?" he asked as he floated in front of her.  
She appeared to have survived the ramming of Billy with no ill effects. She hovered in front of them for a moment before smiling and shooting up into the air above their heads. Holding out her arms, she performed a few ballerina spins. As he watched her, a smile crept onto LaCroix's lips -- she was more than all right.  
Moriah continued to fly above them, performing flips, spins, and arcs. The sound of voices drew LaCroix's and Nick's attention towards the ground. Billy was still lying on the ground, but the members of his gang were all staring up at Moriah. They heard such comments as: "WOW!", "Can you believe that?", "None of us can fly like that.", and finally, "She's the prettiest thing I've ever seen." LaCroix had to agree with all the comments, especially the last one. Moriah was the prettiest and most graceful woman he had seen in centuries.  
"She is beautiful," Nick commented. "And tough. I have never seen a woman as tough as she is, but able to remain so feminine. If only..."  
Nick's voice trailed off and LaCroix knew that he was thinking of Natalie again. Since he had decided to remove himself from Nick's relationship with her, Nick seemed to be more incapable of making a decision regarding Natalie's fate than before. He was about to comment on Nick's statement when Moriah chose that moment to rejoin them. His relief showed on his face. He really did not relish the thought of having a discussion about Natalie. That seemed to be something that was more in Moriah's realm. He held up his arms and she floated gently into his embrace with her back against his chest.  
She turned her head and smiled up at him. "Hi, Lucien! How's Billy? Did I hurt him?"  
Nick laughed. "Billy is still lying on the ground." He pointed towards the ground below them, then continued, " The gang is as mesmerized by you as LaCroix is. You could very easily steal his gang from him."  
She felt LaCroix's arms tighten around her. "Nick, what would I do with them, besides give them a good scrubbing. Why would I want to steal his gang when I don't even want my own fledgling. If I want to play mother hen, I would at least use my option to create my own fledgling and pick someone more in line with my own tastes. Billy's gang just needs a good leader."  
Nick thought for a moment. "It would have been better if that vampire had brought Johnny across instead of Billy. He's appears to be the smarter and more stable of the two."  
"Yes," LaCroix said softly. "He would make an effective leader."  
Moriah pulled out of LaCroix's arms and backed up against Nick. "Lucien, what are you talking about? I didn't seriously think that we would make them another leader, especially Johnny. I have no doubts that he would do well as a vampire, but I would just as soon not bring another one across. I would not want you to do such a thing. There has to be another solution short of destroying Billy."  
She looked back at the ground and Billy was still lying on the ground. She did not realize that she had hit him that hard. She shook her head and turned back to LaCroix.  
"I hate to admit it," Nick remarked. "But, it seems the best solution to me." He paused, then continued, "Even if they will not follow Billy any longer, neither Billy nor his gang can be left alone without any guidance."  
Moriah sighed. "Look, this problem doesn't belong to either of you -- it's mine. I'm the one who became involved with these idiots in the first place. Even being a second generation from Lucien should be strong enough to control these goons. If anyone has to take on a new fledgling, I will do it. There is no reason for either of you to stay here. You can go home."  
"No reason to stay!" LaCroix exclaimed. "You being here is plenty of reason for me to stay. I could not be separated from you for that long. A couple of days is more than I can stand. It will be different this time, we can fly to the opera, concerts, or plays in very little time. First and foremost, I don't want you to be responsible for a fledgling. You are not ready yet."  
Nick leaned forward and whispered in Moriah's ear. "And, he doesn't want to leave you alone with Johnny, especially once the barrier of being a human is removed."  
Moriah stared at LaCroix as Nick whispered in her ear. "No," she said quietly. "There is no reason for you to feel that way, Lucien."  
"Nicolas, what did you say to her?" LaCroix demanded.  
Moriah floated over to him. "He just said that you did not want to leave me alone with Johnny, especially if he were one of us," she said, placing her hand on his cheek. "You know that I am yours -- for eternity. I have no interest in anyone else, vampire or human."  
LaCroix ran his hands up and down her arms, but remained silent. He did not know what to say to her. Insecurities were feelings that he never acknowledged; hence, he never had to deal with them. Her presence had caused several of these feelings to creep to the surface, and he was no more ready to deal with them now than in the past. Unfortunately, to keep her in his life, he was forced to do just that -- he could no longer afford to ignore his feelings.  
Finally, he said, "Shall we see how Billy has reacted to your attack before I decide what needs to be done in this situation?"  
"Yes, Lucien," she answered, taking hold of his hand.  
Nick shook his head, but decided against saying anything else. When LaCroix floated down towards the ground with Moriah, Nick silently followed them. The moment that her feet touched the ground, the members of Billy's gang surrounded her and all talking at once. From what she could gather from the words being thrown at her, they were asking her to teach them to fly the way that she did. All the voices and the crowd were a little too much for her, and she found herself backing up against LaCroix. He protectively placed his arms around and flashed the gang members a stare and a little fang, causing them to suddenly become silent and take a few steps away from Moriah.  
"Gentlemen, and I use the term loosely, we will talk about your flying abilities later," LaCroix said, causing them to back up even farther. "At the moment, we wish to have a talk with Billy."  
"Billy! Look at me!" LaCroix demanded.  
The sound of LaCroix's voice caused everyone to jump, including Moriah. Billy glared up at LaCroix from his place on the ground. Nick reached down and placed both of his arms under Billy's, picking him up from the ground. Moriah stood way off to the side since she had no idea what LaCroix was doing, and she did not want to be any sort of a distraction. She sat on a tree stump and watched LaCroix carefully she still had so much to learn from him. He was right. She was definitely not ready for a fledgling of her own. She did not think that she would ever be.  
Billy shook his head several times. "What happened?" he said. "All I remember is seeing the little gal flying towards me."  
"Why, Billy," one of his gang called. "She creamed you."  
LaCroix jerked his head around and the vampire hung his head, then stepped back out of his line of sight. When Billy looked up him, LaCroix said quietly, "Yes, Billy. The "little gal," as you call her, defeated you and knocked you unconscious. Now that she has proved that she is more than you can handle and that she can destroy you if she wishes, I have to decide your fate. By all vampire rights, you should not be here. The Enforcers should have come for all of you the minute that you allowed humans to know of your existence. I have no idea why they did not. It can only be because another vampire did not pass on the information. You have been lucky enough that we have been the only vampires to have contact with you. But, I cannot allow you to run free, continuing to behave the way that you have in the past. Your behavior is dangerous for us all."  
Billy stared past LaCroix and Nick towards Moriah. A smirk appeared on his face as he stared at her. The smirk made Moriah uncomfortable and enraged LaCroix. He reached out to slap Billy, but stopped himself, dropping his hand to his side. He could not lose control now. Instead, he gave Billy an icy stare. It was the most icy stare that Moriah had ever seen on his face. It ran a chill through her, causing her to rub her hands up and down her arms.  
LaCroix continued to stare at Billy as he spoke. "Now what to do about you. I should destroy you now so that my Moriah would not worry her pretty little head about you ever again. Even if I do not, it is only a matter of time before the Enforcers come for you. Now that we know about the town and the mess that you have caused, they will know too. They have a tendency to know everything that we do."  
Moriah's grew large. She was beginning to understand a little more about the Enforcers.  
Billy shook his head. "Old Man, what are you talking about, the Enforcers?"  
"Fledgling, your master taught you nothing, did he? Do you even know how to hypnotize humans to erase the evidence of your existence?"  
Billy shook his head. "No."  
"The Enforcers are special vampires who punish those who do not keep the code, who do not protect our existence from the prying eyes of the humans. You have flagrantly broken every one of those codes. It is only a matter of time before they come for you and any human in this town who has evidence of our existence."  
"Johnny, too?" Moriah asked, jumping up from her stump.  
"Yes, Johnny, too," he answered.  
"My God, Billy. You have signed your own brother's death certificate as well as yours and your gangs, plus every human who has come in contact with you," she said, shaking her head and sitting back on the stump.  
"So," Billy sneered. "What are they to me?"  
The flagrant disregard for human and vampire life angered Moriah. She shot off the stump and grabbed Billy by the collar. She floated up in the air, taking him with her.  
Holding him out in mid-air, she exclaimed, "How dare you take life so casually! I could understand if you were feeding on the humans, but to put them and your own gang in danger just for your own power trip. I can't believe that you would do this to Johnny. He has never tried to hurt you or destroy you. He still loves you if that is possible."  
LaCroix and Nick moved away from Moriah. She was very angry and they had no idea what she would do. LaCroix was beginning to see that he had created a creature that could be as dangerous as he was, but luckily that was only on rare occasions. Actually, he had hoped that she had this capacity in her all the time. She would not be able to stay with him for eternity if she did not possess a certain amount of raw anger and evil.  
Moriah swung Billy around and hurled him through the air. "I should destroy you now or let Lucien have you, but I think that you should see the Enforcers before you cease to exist. I hear that they are quite frightful looking and are ruthless in their pursuit of code violators."  
LaCroix and Nick watched Billy sail over their heads and land some one hundred yards away. The sight of Moriah throwing Billy through the air caused all his gang to scatter into the night. She flew over to where Billy lay and glared down at him. She did not know if she was angrier with him or with herself for losing her temper. She hovered above him, staring at him and keeping him pinned to the ground until LaCroix came for her.  
"Moriah, let him up," LaCroix said, pulling her away from him. "The Enforcers will arrive soon enough."  
She allowed him to lead her away. "Lucien, can we do anything for Johnny?"  
He sighed. "Yes, Little One, we can. We can erase his memories of us, Billy, and his gang. He will know us, but remember nothing about us being vampires. He will be a simple human again without the burden that his brother laid on his shoulders."  
"Can we do it tonight? There is no telling when the Enforcers will show up."  
"All right, Moriah. But, may I ask why you care so much for this human?"  
"He reminds me of my father who died right after I came to Toronto. All of my human family is dead and except for Natalie, he's my last tie to my human life. I don't know if this makes any sense or not."  
"It makes perfect sense to me," Nick said. "I'll go get him if you want me to and we can free him now."  
Moriah looked up at LaCroix. He turned to Nick and said, "Nicolas, bring him to the house. We will be wait for you there."  
"Thank you, Nick," Moriah said, placing a kiss on his cheek.  
"As LaCroix says, 'I am powerless when it comes to you,'" he said, flying towards Johnny's.  
They looked back to the spot where Billy had landed, but he had disappeared into the night. LaCroix turned to Moriah and pointed towards the house. She nodded her head, so he took her hand and they flew towards the house.  
  
Once they were in the house, Moriah collapsed on the sofa. She was acquiring the beginnings of a very bad headache. As she sat on the sofa rubbing her head, LaCroix sat down beside her and pulled her into his lap.  
"Close your eyes, Little One," he whispered, laying her back in his arms. "You need to rest. You had quite an evening so far and it could get worse."  
"Worse?"  
"Yes, I was serious. The Enforcers will show up now that other vampires know about this situation."  
"I know you were, that was why I was worried about Johnny. Why are you worried? Are Nick and I in any danger?"  
"I do not think so, but please do not leave my side until we are out of this town."  
She laid her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes. "I won't. I promise."  
He very gently kissed her forehead, then massaged her brow until her breathing indicated that she had fallen asleep. He sat quietly, holding her for a few minutes when it dawned on him that Nick should have been here waiting for them. Moriah possessed an uncanny link to both him and Nick. It was stronger than his link to Nick. If she did not express any concern, then maybe there was no reason to worry.  
Just as he decided that everything was all right and that Nick would walk through the door any minute, Moriah sat straight up in his arms. "Nick's in trouble," she announced. "We have to get them fast."  
"Them?" he questioned.  
"Yes. Johnny's with him."  
He rose from the sofa and set Moriah on the floor. "Come then," he said, taking her hand. "If you feeling is that strong, something is very wrong."  
They stepped outside and LaCroix tuned into his connection with his child. In a few minutes he was up in the air, dragging Moriah behind him. They landed in a field behind one of the horse ranches just outside town. They stood in front of a large barn. The ground doors were closed, but light was pouring out of the hayloft door.  
"Nick's in there," she whispered. "I can feel him."  
"Yes. And, so are Billy and his gang," LaCroix sighed. "If they are involved, there is no telling what we are about to encounter. I also detect more than one human in the barn."  
"Billy hasn't be able to detect us before, so maybe we can sneak up on them. Nick should be the only one who knows that we are out here."  
LaCroix tightened his grip on her hand as they floated up to the hayloft door. They stepped inside the window and walked over to the edge of the loft. As they expected, the vampires below had no idea that they were in the barn. As Moriah scanned the barn floor for Nick, she suddenly gasped, so LaCroix followed her gaze. They found Nick and Johnny chained in a corner of the barn. They were encircled by holy water, garlic, assorted crosses, and every other anti-vampire device of legend. It looked a little like over-kill to her, but she had observed that humans on a mission always tended to do such things. Surrounding him was Billy, his gang, and Lauren who was holding a stake in each hand.  
"Lauren," she whispered. "Lauren is in cahoots with Billy? I don't quite understand this. She acted as if she hated vampires."  
"You did say that there was something very wrong with her," he answered.  
Something in his voice made her glance over at him and his facial features hardened as he slowly vamped-out in front of her. She would fight anyone, LaCroix included, who tried to tell her that he did not care for Nick. He was after all LaCroix's child and they had been together on and off for centuries. Even though it remained strained most of the time, there was a definite tie between the older vampire and his wayward child.  
"What do we do?" Moriah asked.  
"You are much faster than I am," he answered. "You free Nick and Johnny and stay with them while I amuse myself with the others. I am in the mood to play with a few inferior vampires and one human. "  
"I'm beginning to enjoy it a little too much myself," she admitted.  
"Well, shall we, Little One?"  
Nick showed no fear; he knew that Moriah and LaCroix were there with him. Moriah would let nothing happen to him; he knew that for a fact. As for LaCroix, despite all their differences, he felt certain that he would never allow him to perish, especially at the hands of a human. He looked down at Johnny and gave him a reassuring look, then quickly glanced towards the loft. Johnny nodded his head to show that he understood, then they waited patiently for Nick's family to make their move.  
Johnny decided to stall for time. "Lauren, why are you doing this?" he asked. "I thought that you hated Billy."  
"Oh, not anymore," she cooed. "He promised me power if I helped him get rid of the little bitch, her master, and her brother. You're just upset because you're in love with her and have been since she came to town."  
"So, it was a set up at the fair. You and Billy planned it. Trying to test Moriah's powers, were you? And, what did you find out? She beat Billy earlier, you know that, don't you Lauren?"  
Lauren turned towards Billy. "What's he talking about?"  
"Oh, nothing," Billy murmured.  
"Nothing!" Johnny said. "From what I heard she threw you all over the meadow. Are you sure that you wish to tangle with her again?"  
When Moriah and LaCroix appeared before them, Johnny became silent and watched them intently. LaCroix landed behind Billy and grabbed him by his shirt, hoisting him high in the air. While he had everyone's attention, Moriah swooped into sight. Flying between Lauren and Nick, she slapped Lauren hard, causing her to fly across the barn and land unconscious in a corner. She grabbed several strings of garlic that had been placed around Nick's neck and threw them across the barn. She then grabbed Nick and Johnny by their chains and airlifted them up over the anti- vampire paraphernalia, then up to the loft. Once Nick was away from the stifling influence of the garlic and the other things, he was able to break his chains and fly out of Moriah's grip. He circled and landed on the loft floor and caught Johnny as she hovered above him. He snapped Johnny's chains; then as Moriah continued to hover above him, he turned his attention to the floor.  
Lauren was still lying in the corner where she landed when Moriah slapped her. Not wanting to leave Johnny or Nick or go against LaCroix's orders, she resigned herself to staying with them, but she positioned herself where she could keep an eye on Lauren's every movement. Nick and Johnny closed in on either side of her to watch LaCroix.  
When LaCroix was certain that Moriah had Nick and Johnny safely in her possession, he began to toss vampires all over the barn. They slammed into walls and broke the stalls as they landed on them. He was such an imposing figure, and the other vampires were definitely frightened -- as well they should be. The older that Moriah became in vampire years, the less tolerant she was becoming of what she considered stupid human and vampire behavior. At the moment, Lauren and the group of vampires before her were about as stupid as they came and her tolerance level was at zero.  
LaCroix crossed his arms in front of him. "Well, well, what have we here? Do you really think that you can destroy me and my children with the help of a mere human. I think not. You will be lucky if I do not destroy you instead."  
Johnny shook his head. "Wow, what a presence!"  
"I know," Moriah said softly. "I know."  
Johnny glanced down at her as she looked between LaCroix and Lauren. He knew that he never had a chance with her that was why he never tried. From the moment that she showed up in town, it was obvious that she was in love with someone and no one stood a chance with her. Now that he had gotten the chance to know them, he saw that LaCroix loved her just as much. He also saw how powerful LaCroix was, and there was no way that he was going to make this ancient vampire angry with him. He would do whatever was asked of him.  
"What should I do with you?" LaCroix remarked, staring at the scuffed up vampires in front of him.  
Everyone's attention was on LaCroix, so no one noticed that Lauren was regaining consciousness in the corner behind him. She sat up and held her head in her hands. After shaking her head a few times, she stood. Since LaCroix was in control of her comrades in crime, she looked around for some way to stop him. When Moriah slapped her, she was still holding a stake in her hand. She vaguely remembered having the stake in her hand as she sailed across the barn, so she began to look around for it. It took her a few minutes, but she finally found it. She very carefully sneaked up behind LaCroix, trying to be as quiet as she could. She was standing behind him with the stake raised when something drew Moriah's attention to her.  
"NO!" Moriah screamed as she rocketed through the air towards Lauren.  
Before anyone knew what had happened, Moriah was behind Lauren and completely vamped-out. She wrapped her arm around her and pulled her away from LaCroix. What happened next shocked everyone, especially Moriah. She shoved Lauren's head to the side and sunk her fangs in her neck. It took a few moments for the realization of what she had done to hit her. When it did, she released her hold on Lauren and stepped back. Lauren's limp, lifeless body fell to the floor while Moriah stared at her. All the vampires in the barn knew that this was totally out of character for Moriah, so they all stood and stared. LaCroix was the first to recover from the shock.  
Since he could not leave the redneck vampires unattended, he called, "Nicolas, see to Moriah while I finish here."  
Nick was still in shock, so Johnny had to shake him. "Nick, Moriah needs you," he said softly.  
Nick slowly turned his head towards Johnny, but didnot respond to him or LaCroix. "Never mind," Johnny said.  
He jumped from the loft and ran across the barn to Moriah. "Johnny, I'm sorry," she stammered.  
Johnny turned her to face him. "We'll talk about that later. Right now, we have something more important to deal with. I'm not a vampire, but I know enough to know that you have to finish what you started. You can't leave her in limbo. Moriah, do you hear me?"  
She continue to stare down at Lauren who was lying in a heap on the floor.  
From behind her, a hand came down on her shoulder. "He's right" Nick said. "As much as I hate to make you do this. You have to finish it. Either kill her or bring her across. I'll be here and help you through whichever you decide."  
She glanced up towards LaCroix and his gaze met hers. "You have to do it, Little One. Let Nicolas help you. I will be there after I dispatch this garbage."  
Looking between Nick and Johnny, she finally shrugged her shoulders and knelt down beside Lauren. "I can't bring her across. She would be as demented as Divia was. I suppose that I have no choice but to kill her."  
Nick knelt down beside her and picked Lauren up in his arms. He carried her over to a work table setting near one of the walls and laid her carefully on it. He walked back and pulled Moriah to her feet. With his arm around her shoulders, he escorted her over to the table. Very slowly and very gently, he proceeded to instruct her on what she needed to do. As he walked her through the steps, Johnny walked over and stood behind Nick. He watched them carefully, making note of everything that Moriah did.  
After Moriah performed every step as Nick instructed and Lauren was undeniably dead, she moved away from her. She felt a trickle on her chin and reached up to wipe the blood away. There was more blood on face and chin, then when she bit LaCroix.  
Nick stared at Moriah and knew that he was going to be of no use to her. She needed LaCroix and she needed him now.  
He landed next to LaCroix. "I'll keep these idiots in line. At the moment Moriah really needs you. Look at her."  
LaCroix turned his head towards Moriah while Nick sent threatening stares to the redneck vampires. He knew that Nick was correct and that she was going to need as much help as he could give her. Staking Divia was bad enough, but this time she had taken a human life. When he looked across the barn towards Moriah, she was covered in blood and was trying to frantically wipe it away. He wasted no time in flying to her side and leaving Nick in charge.  
"Allow me," he whispered, taking a handkerchief from his pocket.  
He very gently and very tenderly wiped every drop of blood off her hands. There was still blood on her face, but the handkerchief had no clean spots left on it. The look in her eyes tore at his old vampire heart, and he kissed her softly, tasting the human blood on her lips. An idea occurred to him and he began to slowly kiss every inch of her face and neck until he had kissed and licked all the blood away. When he finished and moved away from her, Moriah wrapped her arms around his waist held on tightly to him.  
"Thank you," she whispered.  
He wrapped his arms around her. "Where else would I be?"  
"Thank you, Nick," she called to his back.  
He called back. "I couldn't abandoned you after all that we've been through. You shouldn't feel too bad. You were just protecting LaCroix. It the same as staking Divia. They were both a little on the demented side."  
Moriah turned to where Johnny was standing in the corner. "How are you doing, Johnny?"  
"Better than you would expect," he answered. "Lauren and I haven't been happy for years. You actually set me free. At the moment, I am more worried about you than anything else."  
"Thank you, Johnny, but I'll be okay. I hate to do this but to keep you safe from the Enforcers, I have to. While Lucien and Nick are taking care of Billy and the boys, I am going to have to erase your memories."  
"I understand. I won't forget you, Lucien, or Nick, will I?"  
She shook her head. "Oh no, you will know us. You just won't know that we are vampires or that Billy was once a vampire."  
"Just as long as I still know who you are, it's okay with me. It has to be done, doesn't it?"  
"Yes," LaCroix answered. "Or, you will be destroyed when the Enforcers finally come."  
Johnny turned to Moriah. "Ready when you are, Moriah."  
Moriah wrapped her arms around him and floated up in the air. "I am going to take him up to the loft where it is quieter and the light is better."  
"All right," LaCroix said. "We are here if you need us."  
"I won't. Johnny won't fight, will you?"  
Johnny smiled. "No."  
LaCroix walked back to Nick and the redneck vampires while Moriah floated up to the loft. She set Johnny down in the hay, then dropped down beside him. Turning so that Johnny could see her eyes in the light, she slowly began to blank his memories of them out, so that she could fill him with suggestions of her own. They had been in the loft less than two minutes when Moriah felt a chill and saw two shadows appear over hers and Johnny's heads. She looked up to find herself staring into the face of two of the most terrifying vampires that she had ever seen. They dressed in black business suits and looked just like ordinary business men, except for the fangs and glowing eyes. They each had a long pair of fangs that hung below their lower lips. Their eyes glowed a little different color than LaCroix's and Nick's; there was a little more orange in them. Each one of them had a two foot stake in their hand. In their business suits, they reminded her of what people always said about the bloodsuckers on Wall Street, but these creatures were deadly.  
"The Enforcers," she said aloud.  
Suddenly, she and Johnny were jerked from the floor. Luckily, she had just gotten Johnny into a trance, so he had no idea what was happening. He laid limp in the grip of one of the Enforcers. The other Enforcer grabbed Moriah by the neck and was holding her up high in the air, staring at her.  
"Put me down," she pleaded. "I haven't done anything. I haven't broken any of the codes. I've been trying to protect the codes."  
The Enforcer only continued to stare up at her. She noticed that neither one spoke. They seemed to communicate mentally and with shakes and nods of their heads.  
She tried again. "Please, put me down and my friend too. As you can see, he is already in one of my trances. He would have been clean had you given me a few more minutes."  
Her pleas still had no affect on the Enforcer. Neither one of them raised a stake to her, they only stood and stared at her. At one point, one of them reached up and touched her cheek with the back of his hand. The touch of his hand sent a violent shiver through her. His touch was colder than any other vampire's touch, and she felt nothing but death in him.  
There was only one thing that she could do. She opened her mouth and screamed, "Lucien, Nick! The Enforcers! Help!"  
She felt a rush of air and saw LaCroix land behind the Enforcers, his eyes glowing and his fangs at their longest length. She felt another rush of air and knew that Nick had landed behind her.  
"Moriah, it will be all right," Nick said. "LaCroix has some influence over these beings. Just stay quiet."  
She nodded her head, then watched LaCroix carefully. He pushed his way between the two Enforcers, then turned to face them.  
"What you doing to my child?" he demanded. "She has done nothing to endanger the code and neither has this human. The breakers of the code are all down below with the other Enforcers.""  
It became a stare-off between LaCroix and the Enforcer who was holding on tightly to Moriah. Her neck was beginning to hurt and she wished that he would let go of her. She reached back with her hand towards Nick and hoped that he would take hold of it. He did indeed place his hand in hers, squeezing it tightly. Just feeling his touch made her feel better about the situation.  
The Enforcers looked at each other then nodded their heads. The one holding Moriah reached up and touched her cheek again, then slung her across the barn. He threw her with such force that Nick lost his hold on her hand. Nick rocketed through the air and was able to catch her before she hit anything. He set them both down gently in the hay. Moriah wrapped her arms around his neck and hid her face against his shoulder.  
"Nick, those are absolutely the most horrible creatures I have ever seen," she whispered.  
"That's the idea," he answered, stroking her hair. "To scare you so badly that you wouldn't dare break the vampire code."  
"Well, it works."  
Nick felt her shaking in his arms. "Moriah, what's wrong?"  
She lifted her head. "Nothing," she said, giggling. "My last statement just struck me as funny. I think that I am still in shock from killing Lauren and drinking her blood, then seeing the Enforcers. What do you think?"  
"I think that you are the most unusual woman that I have ever met and the only vampire of your kind," he said, shaking his head.  
"Nicolas, come here and bring Moriah with you," LaCroix called.  
When they looked at LaCroix, they saw that he was alone. Obviously, the Enforcers had left, so it seemed safe enough. Nick stood up and pulled Moriah to her feet.  
"Yes," Nick said as they landed in front of him.  
LaCroix looked sternly at his children. "Nicolas, I want you to take Moriah home. I will follow later."  
Neither of them dared dispute his orders.  
"Yes, LaCroix," Nick said.  
"What about Johnny?" Moriah asked.  
"I will take care of Johnny," he said, then he quickly added, "He will not be harmed. I promise. Moriah, I know you have a lot of questions and that you need me right now, but go with Nicolas and we will talk later."  
"Of course, Lucien," she answered, smiling. "I'm as good as out of here."  
They heard noises down below, so Nick peered out of the hayloft and saw Billy and his gang surrounded by the Enforcers. He almost felt sorry for them as he watched them cowering before the Enforcers, but neither he nor LaCroix could help them. No wonder LaCroix wanted Moriah out of the barn. If she saw or heard the destruction about to happen, she might never recover. She had been through more than most fledglings her age had to experience, so he was more than willing to do as LaCroix asked.  
He reached for her hand. "Ready, Moriah?" he asked.  
"Yes, Nick. Let's get out of here. Now!"  
LaCroix shook his head. She knew what was about to happen. Somehow she always knew these things. It amazed him the insight that she had for someone so young.  
He leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead. "I will see you later, Little One. I promise."  
  
Once they arrived at the house, Moriah tried to lay in her room and rest, but every time she closed her eyes, a myriad of images bombarded her sleep. The first time, she saw the Enforcer and felt his hand around her throat. Another time, she saw herself covered in blood, being chased by the Enforcers. Finally, she gave up and went to the living room to watch TV. Nick was sitting on the sofa waiting for her. He had an idea that she would not be able to rest and wanted to be there for her when she needed him. She grabbed an afghan and plopped down on the sofa beside him.  
"The Enforcers really scared you, didn't they?" he asked, putting his arm around her.  
"Yes, I guess that they did. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the Enforcers or Lauren."  
"What about Lauren?" Nick asked. "This was the first time that you killed a human."  
"I felt badly when I first did it as you well know; I suppose that it was from the shock. Now I don't really care, just like Divia it was her or Lucien and, I will always choose my family. Maybe, I am more like him, then all of you think."  
"I wouldn't go that far," Nick said, sitting forward on the edge of the sofa. "You could perform evil acts everyday for the next five hundred years and not ever be his equal."  
Moriah shook her head and leaned back against his arm. For all their apparent struggles with each other, LaCroix and Nick liked each other; she was sure of that.  
"I'll sit with you until LaCroix comes home, if you wish?" he offered.  
"Would you, Nick? I would feel much safer."  
"Of course. Come, here," he said, pulling her closer so that she could lean against him.  
Nick took the afghan from her and spread it over them. They sat in this manner for several hours, watching the hypnotic light emitting from the TV. At one point Moriah noticed that there was light peeking under the shades. She jerked her head around and looked at the clock -- it was eight o'clock in the morning. It was eight o'clock and LaCroix had not returned. She sighed and lay back against Nick.  
"He's all right," Nick whispered. "You know that. You would feel it if something happened to him."  
"I know. If something happened to him, a part of me would be missing."  
"He'll be home soon. I bet that you're ready to go home to the nice peaceful city?"  
She grinned at him. "And you would be absolutely correct. You know that I am going to go crazy until the sun sets."  
He shook his head. "I know. Why don't you call Nat and have a little chat? It would occupy your mind and your time."  
"And, you could talk to her too, huh?" she teased, grinning.  
"It had crossed my mind," he admitted.  
They decided to take advantage of the extension phone and both talk to Natalie at the same time. Moriah excused herself after a while and allowed Nick and Natalie time to talk alone. Nick called her back to the phone, then she and Natalie talked girl talk without him. The phone bill would be outrageous, because when Nick finally hung up the phone it was only a couple of hours before dark.  
She thanked Nick for the distraction, then went to her room to lie down for a while. After all she had not rested for twenty-four hours, and she hoped that sleep would come at least for a little while. She was well rewarded for her effort. A few minutes after her head touched the pillow she fell asleep.  
  
The dreams still came as Moriah slept. If the Enforcers were not chasing her, Lauren and Billy were. She tossed and she turned, then at one point she sat up in bed and called LaCroix's name.  
In her dream, she heard LaCroix answer, "Yes, My Little One," and felt him wrap his arms around her.  
The funny thing was that when she woke herself up, she still felt his arms around her. She opened her eyes slowly and saw him staring lovingly down at her. Not quite believing what she saw, she reached up and touched his cheek.  
"Moriah, My Little One," he whispered, leaning over and kissing her.  
He was definitely real and not a manifestation of her dream. She slipped her arms up around his neck and hugged him tightly to her as they kissed. She lay back against pillows, bringing him back with her.  
"I missed you," she whispered, staring up into the glow of his eyes.  
"I missed you, too," he whispered between kisses. "I have become too accustomed to having you with me during the day. Between the Enforcers, Billy, and Johnny, I was detained until it was too late to come home."  
They were both so tense and anxious from the events of the night before, that they vamped-out much sooner than they normally did.  
Later as they lay in each others arms, LaCroix turned to her. "You were not worried about me, were you?" he asked, pushing her hair away from her face.  
"A little," she admitted, running her fingertips around the out line of his face. "After what happened last night," she whispered. "Anything could happen. I have always thought of you as indestructible. After seeing the Enforcers, I'm not sure anymore."  
He stared into her eyes. "It will take more than the Enforcers to rid this world of me."  
He felt her shiver a little as she asked, "Lucien, why did the Enforcer grab me? I didn't and haven't done anything to break the codes, to endanger the community."  
"Curiosity," he answered, caressing her cheek. "Curiosity about my new fledgling. Your reputation, like mine, proceeds you, Little One."  
She wrinkled her brow. "I don't understand."  
"Just as I have a reputation for being cold and ruthless, you have one for being generous and warm and that is very unusual in the vampire world. For you to be my fledgling and possess such a personality makes you even that much more of a curiosity."  
"Oh," she whispered, staring at a spot on the wall. "Well, did he have to be so rough?"  
"They do not know anything else. They are the eliminators of our race."  
"Billy and his gang? Are they gone, destroyed?"  
"Yes, they have been destroyed. If they had become restless and journeyed from this area they could have caused the resurgence of the vampire hunters and that could not be allowed."  
"And, Johnny?"  
"Home, resting in his bed. He will be fine."  
"Thank you, Lucien. Thank you for not destroying him or allowing him to be destroyed."  
Although he did not voice it, he knew that if he destroyed Johnny or allowed him to be destroyed, he would have lost a part of Moriah. A part that he might not have been able to reclaim. Johnny was of no consequence to him anyway. He finally understood what she had been telling him that she was his and that no man, vampire or human, had the ability to change that.  
"You are so soft, so desirable," he whispered, placing kisses along her neck.  
"You know, I wasn't so soft last night when I drank Lauren dry."  
He stopped nuzzling her neck and lifted his head. "Moriah, you were only being what you are -- a vampire. Besides, you were once again protecting me. Something for which no one blames you."  
She dropped her eyes and sighed. "Lucien, I have to admit something."  
"What?"  
"I liked it. I actually like the taste of human blood. It isn't as bland as the animal blood. And, I don't feel that bad about Lauren. She was a nasty little piece of work."  
"Oh," he said, smiling slightly."  
She quickly added, "I'm not saying that I would go out hunting humans for food, but the occasional meal from one who is deserving wouldn't be too bad."  
He shook his head. "What AM I going to do with you?"  
"Love me, kiss me, teach me."  
"Hmm, I already love you and here's a kiss," he said, kissing her. "Now, what do you wish me to teach you?"  
"I want to learn how to bring someone across. I don't mean right now, but one day I would like to know how."  
He arched his eyebrow. "If you want to learn, I will teach you, but I do not understand why."  
She could not tell him the real reason, so she only said, "Neither do I. I just feel that it is something that I ought to know."  
"Then, you shall learn it," he vowed. "For now, I think that we both ought to rest. I can think of nothing that I would rather do at the moment than lie here with you in my arms for the next few hours. Then, maybe just before daylight, we can take one last flight in the country, then come back and rest for the trip home."  
"Sounds good to me," she whispered, snuggling up close to him and closing her eyes.  
LaCroix lay for a while staring at Moriah and wondered if she knew just how close they came to losing each other. The Enforcers were indeed curious about her just as he had said, but they wanted to take her with them. Just like all the others, they wanted to possess her light, her spirit. He called in every marker and used every bit of influence that he possessed to persuade them to allow her to stay with him and the whole vampire community. It pleased him to hear that she enjoyed the taste of human blood. He in no way wanted to see the light in her destroyed. It was this light that made her special, but it also made her the object of envy. He hoped with every step she took closer to becoming what he was, her light would diminish a little, but so far it had not. The light was still in her, glowing brightly while she slept. He would just have to resign himself to the continual battles that he would fight to keep her with him, and he WOULD keep her with him -- he could not afford to lose her now. She moaned softly, then moved closer to him, never opening her eyes. Something told him that she knew.  
  
They slept until one in the morning, then Moriah, LaCroix, and Nick flew out to the lake for one last night in the country before heading home.  
Moriah found a grassy patch along the shore and floated down into the grass. LaCroix and Nick landed on either side of her. She lay back in the grass and stared up at the stars, listening to the night sounds. It felt good to enjoy the beauty of the area without fear of Billy and his gang intruding. Nick asked Moriah to perform some of her aerial ballet, and she was more than happy to comply. As she danced in the air above them, LaCroix and Nick watched her from the grass below.  
"LaCroix, I don't know how or why you were given the honour to possess such a beautiful creature," Nick said. "But, I am warning you that if you ever hurt her, I will do what I can to see that you pay."  
"Nicolas, this will sound strange coming from me, but if I ever hurt her, I deserve whatever anyone tries to do to me," LaCroix answered, never taking his eyes off Moriah. "Including you."  
Moriah swooped between them several times during her little ballet, flying just a few feet from the ground. About an hour before sunrise, LaCroix and Nick joined her in the air and took turns dancing with her before they returned to the house.  
They filled the daylight hours with resting and packing for the trip back home. On the way out of town, they stopped by Johnny's house so that Moriah could say her good-byes.  
Moriah had not seen Johnny since the night of destruction in the barn. She found it strange that he had not attempted to visit them during the day. LaCroix had told her that he would remember everything except that they were vampires or that there were ever any vampires in town. It would be hard to say good-bye, because this would be the last time that she would ever see him. Since he did not know that they were vampires any longer, she would not be able to visit without causing suspicions about her lack of aging.  
When Johnny opened the door, there was another vampire standing before her. She jerked her head around and stared up at LaCroix. Billy and his gang no longer existed, so there was no reason to bring him across.  
LaCroix pulled her away while Nick followed Johnny into the house. "Little One, I didn't do it," LaCroix explained. "Billy did. He manage to slip away for a few minutes and brought Johnny across before the Enforcers reclaimed him."  
"Lucien, why didn't you tell me?"  
"I did not know how. You would find out soon enough when he returned home with us. We cannot leave him here. Even though he is not technically my fledgling, leaving another untrained, unsupervised vampire in this community would be irresponsible."  
"That is why it took you so long to come home. You were taking care of him and protecting him from the Enforcers, weren't you?" When he did not answer immediately, she asked, "Why are you being so generous? I thought that you were jealous of him."  
"Moriah, generosity has nothing to do with it. If Johnny was destroyed, I felt as if I would have lost a part of you and I could not stand that. I must have all of you."  
"You do have all of me and you always will," she promised. "I would have eventually gotten over Johnny's destruction. I seem to be bouncing back quite fast lately. I am more vampire than I originally thought."  
"Do not change too much, Little One. You are special and I love you the way you are."  
She smiled and floated up to kiss his cheek. "I won't if you won't. I like that cold, arrogant exterior of yours."  
"You are the only one, Little One, he whispered.  
"Lucien, how strong will Johnny be? Billy was such a low generation vampire. Will he be able to take care of himself in the community?"  
"It is hard to say. His life force and personality is much stronger than Billy's, and he is much more intelligent. He would be able to survive on his wits alone."  
"How's does he feel about this?"  
"Why don't you ask him all these questions? There will be plenty of time. He and Nick are driving back in his truck with his things. Since he has just been brought across, he will be very weak and they will have to travel slowly. We will not wait like we did with you."  
"Why? Will he not face the same problems?"  
"No, I could have brought you home sooner, but I did not want to. No one will desire Johnny or try to hurt me through him. He will stay with Nicolas when we return until he has a place of his own. Nicolas even thinks that he can find him a job with the police force. Between Nicolas and I, he will receive the proper training that Billy should have had, then the world will be his. Our little community should have no problem accepting him if he chooses to stay in town for a while."  
A noise brought their attention back to the front porch of Johnny's house. The house was now dark and Nick was walking with the last load to the pick-up truck. He helped Johnny into the pick-up, then climbed in beside him.  
Pulling the pick-up next to LaCroix and Moriah, Nick said, "We will meet you at THE RAVEN."  
Moriah walked over to Johnny's side of the pick-up and leaned in the window. "Are you all right with this?" she asked.  
"I've always been prepared for this possibility," he said, smiling at her. "I knew that Billy would bring me across sooner or later. I just wished that it had been LaCroix, but being trained by him is almost as good."  
"How about everything else? Lauren and Billy's destruction."  
"Lauren and I grew to hate each other over the last five or six years, and Billy was asking for his own destruction. I have a chance at something new and different, so I am not going to dwell on the past and neither should you," he said, reaching over and placing his hand on hers.  
Moriah stared down at his hand and he quickly removed it. "Don't worry about me," he said, smiling sheepishly. "There is no way that I want LaCroix upset with me. You have just gained another brother."  
She smiled broadly. "I can always use another brother."  
After placing a kiss on his cheek, she walked around to the other side of the truck. "See you at home, Nick," she said, leaning in the truck and placing a kiss on his cheek. "Please be careful."  
He grabbed her face before she pulled out of the truck and brushed her cheek with his lips. "I will," he said. "Thank you, for a most enjoyable and interesting trip."  
"Yea, sure," she laughed as she pulled herself out of the truck and backed up against LaCroix. "Next time, we'll go take over a third world country."  
She felt LaCroix chuckling behind her as Nick broke out in all out laughter. From the other side of the truck Moriah saw Johnny smiling. He was going to like being part of this little family, her family.  
As Nick pulled the truck out of the driveway and onto the road, Moriah felt LaCroix arms wrap around her waist. "Nicolas has to take his time, because Johnny is still so weak. It will take them a little over four days to drive back," he whispered, tightening his arms around her. "We will have four days to ourselves before Johnny's training starts. Shall we go home, Little One?"  
She nodded her head, then turned around to face him. He leaned over and kissed her, then picked up their bags. With her hand in his, they rose up in the air and flew north towards home. 


End file.
